Evermore
by TutorGirlandBoyToy
Summary: Evermore: 1. forever, always 2. in the future. Nathan Scott left town five years ago to play for the Knicks, leaving a wife and son behind. Now with a chance to play for the Bobcats will he be able to fix past mistakes? And more importantly, will Haley be able to forgive him?
1. Alone

**Here is a little story we like to call Evermore, and we will get to the reason about that later, but thank you so much for reading. This story was written by two best friends, I'm the Shay half. I am so excited because this whole thing started around three/four years ago when Jen found me randomly to beta her story… this story. She sent me like 2 chapters and we became so close. She stopped writing but we still talked and now we don't go a day without talking. I love her, and always will. We have had our ups and downs but we are together, always and forever. (Jen probably hates how cheesy I'm being.) So then a few months ago or so, we started talking about this story and she asked if I wanted to co-write. I said that's what I was going to ask her and this is it. We are so proud of it and hope you all enjoy it! (Now after reading Jen's note I should include that she is my favorite person in the world and just GETS me like no one else has. I love her for that and she is fabulous. Bow down to her peasant.)**

**And I'm the Jen part of this author's note. I'm also the reason this story took almost four years to write. I have issues with finishing stories but thanks to Shay (and she went through _a lot_ and when I say a lot I mean like, _a shit load of crap a lot_) this story saw an ending. She's amazing and I have no idea how she puts up with me but she does. I'm not very good at the whole writing cheesy messages so I'll just say this: I hope you all enjoy this story that Shay and I wrote. We encourage you to leave reviews and comments (it'll make our day!). We're very happy with the outcome and we hope you enjoy it! (I love Shay very much).**

**Now for the reason behind EVERMORE. I don't remember how but we came upon this word and we just liked the sound of it. _Evermore._ So then we looked it up and the definition was everything that this story truly meant._ Evermore: 1. forever, always. 2. in the future._ So read along and see why we think that this story truly encompasses that.**

**We will try to update on a schedule, two days a week either on Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday!**

**Enjoy and please review!**

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><p>Haley James Scott moved to stand at the bottom of the stairs as she shouted up to her eight year old son. "Jamie, come on sweetie or we're going to be late."<p>

"I'm coming." He groaned racing around.

"Don't forget to brush your teeth!" The twenty five year old mother said as she walked towards the kitchen where her best friend sat.

"You know, that boy is so smart he could already be heading to high school." Brooke stated, reaching over to place some grapes on her two year old's height chair.

"Please God no, he would already be so old. It seems like just yesterday I was bringing him home from the hospital with..." She paused biting her lip, moving to cut up an apple for Jamie's lunch.

"Nathan." Brooke finished. "Hales, that was eight years ago. You need to move on and be able to say his name without crying."

"I know" She nearly whispered wiping a tear. "It's just hard forgetting everything we had. He is the father of my child… He's my husband."

Jamie walked into the room, and slid into a seat next to his aunt. He saw his mother crying and asked "You still thinking about dad?"

Haley turned around quickly to smile at Jamie. "It's nothing Jamie; eat your breakfast. Aunt Brooke made it for you."

"Oh no!" He said pushing it away. "If she made it, I don't wanna eat it."

"Quiet you." She laughed nudging him. "It's just cereal."

"Eat up, I don't want you to be late for school."

"Jude don't do that." Brooke said picking up grapes from the floor. "Are you all done?"

"Ya!" He smiled up at his mom.

"Okay then." She smiled picking him up. "We are off for the day. I'm gonna drop him off at daycare then head to work."

"So Jamie" Haley said moving to pack Jamie's lunch as she spoke. "Uncle Lucas is going to pick you up after school."

"I know" He said shoveling another spoon of cereal into his mouth. "He told me last night that we are going to have a boys night while you, Aunt Brooke and Aunt Rachel have a girls night."

Haley laughed and added "Uncle Lucas doesn't know how to keep a secret does he?"

"Nope" Jamie smiled up at his mother.

"Okay eat up so we can get going."

* * *

><p>Haley ran a hand through her hair as she looked at the piles of essays she still had to correct. She had gotten to work early in hopes of getting through them all but failed when Mrs. Kimmel, the AP Biology teacher, walked in and talked her ear off. After graduating from college, Haley had become a literature teacher at Tree Hill High. When her first student walked in for class Haley put down her red pen and got up to write notes for the days lesson on the board. Turning around she smiled at Amy Jones, whose head was in a book. She was just like Haley in high school; she was a tutor and the school's geek. Haley just hoped she wasn't going to fall in love with the basketball star; Quentin Fields, get married and have a child before finishing high school and in the end have her heart broken.<p>

She was snapped out of her thoughts when the bell rang. She took the absences and started teaching her class. About halfway through class, there was a knock on the door. Haley motioned to a student to open the door and on the other side of that door was one of her students, Samantha Walker.

"Sorry I'm late." She mumbled as she took a seat in the back of the classroom. Haley watched her as she did so and went back to teaching her class. When the final bell rang, Haley said farewell to her students and took her seat. As her last student walk out, she called Samantha and asked her to stay. Sam walked to Haley's desk and sat on Amy's usual desk.

"What do you want? I have another class to go to." She said coldly to her teacher.

"I'll just write you a note. I want to talk to you about your SA. It was really good, I think you have potential as a writer but if you keep acting the way you do in school I have a feeling you won't be going very far." Haley told her nicely.

"I don't care, I have a life to live not a school to live." She replied before taking her bag and making her way to the door.

"Education is part of your life!" Haley shouted at Samantha who was already far down the hall. She nodded her head and got back to her paperwork.

She was once again interrupted by another knock on her door, but this time, it was Lucas.

"Hey" He said.

She smiled at her best friend and said "Hey, you don't know how to keep your mouth shut don't you?"

He looked away, "I told him I was picking him up and then he asked me why and when he did his little innocent face, I couldn't help it. I had to tell him!" Haley laughed at him and hit him in with a book. She noticed that he was holding a magazine in his left hand.

"What are you doing with a magazine? You thought I was going to bore you?" She asked. He looked at his hand and threw her the magazine.

"Look at that." He told her. She unrolled the magazine and read the title page.

_Nathan Scott and Famous Record producer Peyton Sawyer were seen leaving the bar together. Inside for more on this story._

Haley opened the magazine to the right page and started reading the article.

_"On March 3rd, Nathan Scott and Peyton Scott were seen in a Bar in Times Square. Sources say they were talking about Scott's contract ending in April and about marriage and babies. Could the two, who has yet to be confirmed that their dating, be planning a marriage or could Sawyer have a bun in the oven?_

_We all know that Nathan left a small town, Tree Hill, North Carolina to go to New York after agreeing to sign a 5 year contract with the Knicks. Now that this contract is over, Scott has gotten a few offers from the Lakers, the Bobcats and the Sonics, but which will he choose?"_

Haley stared ahead of her lost in her thoughts. "Well it'd be pretty hard for the son of a bitch to get married when he still is to me." She said before taking a seat at her desk. "I have papers to grade."

"Okay" Lucas whispered quietly looking down at his friend.

* * *

><p>After school, Lucas waited outside Jamie's school for him to come out. He saw him walk out with his three best friends, Chuck, Madison and Andre. Lucas smiled seeing Jamie's smile. Jamie was perfect: he was intelligent, athletic and kind-hearted. He deserved better than Nathan Scott but he felt bad for Nathan. Nathan would never see Jamie like this. He didn't know how amazing his son was. But then again he didn't deserve it.<p>

Jamie waved goodbye to his friends and got into the car with his uncle.

"Are Uncle Skills and Mouth already at home?" He asked.

"Yes, they're babysitting Jude. Let's just hope nothing has been destroyed when we get there." Jamie laughed and buckled his seatbelt.

Halfway home, Jamie looked out the window and saw a young family walking down the street. Jamie sighed and looked at his Uncle Lucas.

"Do you know why my dad chose Basketball over me?"

"Jimmy-Jam, I think know one really knows but him." He told his nephew.

"Do you think that someday he's going to come back for me?" Jamie asked curiously.

"Maybe one day, but your dad made a really big mistake and it's going to take a lot to fix it."

"Breaking my mom's heart and leaving me was his big mistake?" He asked

"Yeah, but it's his lost because he's missing out on the best thing he ever had." Lucas told him sincerely.

"What about that blonde girl that he's always with on TV. Who's she?"

Lucas sighed. "That's Peyton Sawyer, she went to high school with us."

"Isn't that the girl who you saved in the library the day of the shooting?" Jamie asked again.

"I think you know too much for your age. Maybe when you get older, you'll know more." Lucas laughed and pulled over.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Haley left school and made her way to Rachel's house, to meet her and Brooke, who were probably already going crazy. She put on the radio and Alone started playing. It reminded her of all the time she had spent with Nathan.<p>

**Till now, I always got by on my own.**

**I never really cared until I met you.**

**And now it chills me to the bone,**

**How do I get you alone?**

_Haley was sitting at the docks working in her books waiting for Nathan._

_"Breakfast of champions, want some?" Nathan said as he placed the food on the table and taking a seat in front of Haley._

_"You're late."_

_He sat and took out a Cracker Jack box and said "Oh, please let this be a cheat sheet." Instead, he took out a little plastic bracelet and looked at it thinking what to do with it. He looked at Haley and said "It's for you."_

_"Stop it." she said as she tried to take her hand back. Once Nathan got it on the smirked at her and said "Don't say I never gave you anything."_

_She sighed and took out her book. "Do you see this book? Because this book is me, I am math."_

_"What's that supposed to mean?"_

_"It's supposed to mean that you can work your whole 'I'm Nathan Scott Mister Big Shot scoring my touchdowns' on somebody else because I don't care."_

_"I don't even play football." He stated._

_"Whatever, the point is, at the end of the day all your bluster and BS don't mean anything to math because math don't care and neither do I."_

_"Well, does English care because I suck at that too?"_

_"Please don't waste my time. I'm already taking a huge chance on you because my instincts are screaming that you're full of shit. Let's just get started okay?"_

_He smirked and nodded. She turned the book towards him and started her lesson. "Page 81..."_

**I sit back and reminisce; it hurts to think about it all.**

**We were on top of the world, whoever though that we would fall?**

**Standing by the phone, alone, ignoring your call.**

**I feel like spider man, you got me flying off of the wall.**

**I ain't wanna leave, but still I had to go.**

**Cause what puts a rainbow without my pot of gold?**

**And now your beds empty and your pillows cold,**

**you never realised the love until my love was gone.**

_"Nathan I know I'm driving you crazy" Haley said to Nathan._

_"No you're not" he replied_

_"Do you think I'm a tease?" she asked_

_"Stop it"_

_"Well, what do you think?"_

_"I think that you're my girlfriend and I like to spend time with you" He told her. She looked at him for a little and looked away unsure._

_"Look, I just don't want to push you" He continued._

_"You're not." She answered raising her voice a little._

_"But I am." She looked at him before he continued "Haley, you got a tattoo for god sakes. And it just freaks me out a little bit because obviously this whole thing about us means a lot to you" He stopped to see her reaction before adding "I just don't want to pressure you and drive you away even though sometimes I can't help it, just like I can't help it that I fell in love with you, cause I did" He looked at her and sigh. Haley put her head down._

_"I love you Haley. And it scares me a little bit. There it is."_

_She looked at him and sighed "Oh wow, there it is." She looked at him again and kissed him passionately. When they finally broke away, she looked at him and said "I love you too" before sharing another passionate kiss._

**When I said I could move on and go,**

**you said I'm weak and it shows,**

**I couldn't go on without you.**

**Now I'm sitting in this house alone,**

**wondering why I left home,**

**And I'm hoping that you know that...**

_"Someday, this beach might wash away... the oceans may dry, the sun could dim, but on that day I'll still be loving you. Always and forever. I promise you, Haley." Nathan said._

_"I, Haley, take you Nathan, to have and to hold from this day forward. In sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better or worse, I promise that I will love and cherish you and will deny all things that come between us. I make this promise for eternity. A promise that I will keep forever, until the end of time, till death do us part"_

**Till now, I always got by on my own.**

**I never really cared until I met you.**

**And now it chills me to the bone,**

**How do I get you alone?**

_Nathan was sitting in the kitchen when he got a call._

_"Haley" He yelled to her. She came out of the bathroom and asked "What?"_

_"I'm going to Duke" He said excited._

_"I'm pregnant"_

_"You..." He whispered bewildered_

_"It's not Brooke, it's me"_

_"Wha... How long have you known?"_

_"A few weeks" She replied._

_"A few weeks?" He said shocked._

_"I'm sorry; I didn't know how to tell you." Nathan looked at her and sat down on a chair._

_"Can you talk to me, tell me what you're thinking" She asked rubbing his arm._

_"Do you still want to go to Stanford?" He questioned._

_"What?"_

_"Stanford, for college?"_

_"Ummm... Yeah of course I do but..." Haley started before being interrupted by Nathan's cell phone ringing. He looked at caller ID 'Rachel'._

_"I have to go." He said getting up and heading to the door._

_"Nathan, Nathan, I'm pregnant. We're pregnant; at least tell me how you feel about that?"_

_"I feel like you should have told me a few weeks ago. That's how I feel." He said before walking out the door._

**You act like you don't need me,**

**'cause you're scared of being needy.**

**You want to have your cake and eat it too,**

**I call that being greedy.**

**And they say that love costs,**

**consider this a freebie.**

**No one said this would be easy.**

**Either love me or just leave me.**

**Admit it, we too old for pretending'.**

**Ain't like our bond is broken,**

**it just needed some mending.**

**And when you need a hand,**

**you know I'll be there to lend it.**

**What's the point in having time,**

**if I ain't there to help you spend it.**

_The whole gang was driving to Honey Grove, Texas to save Mouth when the low fuel light went on and the car stopped on the side of the road._

_"Brooke, what's happening?"_

_"Brooke how long has that light been on?"_

_"I don't know a while, I thought it was pretty" She defended._

_"Brooke" They all growled._

_They were all outside the car on the side of the road when Lucas said "That doesn't change the fact that we haven't seen a single car pass by since we've stopped."_

_"Uh." Brooke mumbled._

_"Until Now." He continued._

_They all looked at the road and saw a bus coming._

_"That's a bus!" Nathan stated._

_"No, that's a tour bus." Brooke restated._

_"Oh, please let it be the Foo Fighters." Peyton pleaded._

_"No, please be Kanye." Pleaded Skills._

_The bus stopped and Chris Keller walked out. "Well, well..."_

_"Stupid Elvis Sandwich!" Haley exclaimed._

**When I said I could move on and go,**

**you said I'm weak and it shows,**

**I couldn't go on without you.**

**Now I'm sitting in this house alone,**

**wondering why I left home,**

**and I'm hoping that you know that...**

_Nathan was outside Haley's house throwing rocks at her window. He didn't notice Haley walking up behind him._

_"Trying to wake my parents? That's their room" She hissed as she walked past him. Nathan ran to her._

_"Wait, Haley, look I need to apologize, okay?" He pleaded_

_"You should buy 'em in bulk if you're gonna hand apologies out that often."_

_"Look will you just... I don't know how to do this all right? I'm…I'm not like you."_

_"What's that suppose to mean?" She asked._

_"All right, I screw up a lot and being around you, I just, I don't wanna be that guy anymore."_

_"Then what do you want to be Nathan?"_

_"I want to be a guy that's good enough to be seen with you" He told her sincerely._

_"You should've thought of that last night. You know I keep... I keep putting myself out there and you keep blowing it and it's probably a good thing because at this point there is nothing that you can say or do that's gonna surprise me!" He interrupted her by pressing his lips against hers._

_"Except that…" She said pulling away. "You shouldn't have done that Nathan."_

_"But I wanted to."_

_"Yeah." She then leaned in and kissed him again._

**Till now, I always got by on my own.**

**I never really cared until I met you.**

**And now it chills me to the bone,**

**How do I get you alone?**

**How do I get you alone?**

**I hear the ticking of the clock**

**I'm lying here, the rooms pitch dark.**

**I wonder where you are tonight,**

**No answer on the telephone.**

**And the night goes buy so very slow**

**Ohhhh, I hope that it won't end though,**

**Alone**

_Nathan walked into his and Haley's bedroom and noticed all the clothes on the floor._

_"Did the closet explode?" He asked as he looked at Haley who was trying to zip up her dress._

_"How do I look in this?"_

_"Is there a right answer to that question?" He asked worried he would upset her. Haley got furious and flung a dress to the floor._

_"Well, none of my dresses fit me anymore" She said._

_"Haley you're pregnant! They're not supposed to fit you!" He assured her._

_And I'm hoping that you know that..._

_Till now, I always got by on my own._

_I never really cared until I met you._

_And now it chills me to the bone,_

_How do I get you alone?_

_Till now, I always got by on my own._

_I never really cared until I met you._

_And now it chills me to the bone,_

_How do I get you alone?_

_How do I get you alone?_

"We're here." Jamie said as he jumped on the couch next to Skills.

"Hey Bro, you ready for some NBA live?" He asked

"Always" James replied.

They made their usual teams: Lucas with Jamie and Jude (who helped sometimes) and Skills with Mouth (who wasn't all that good).

Lucas and Jamie were winning by 6 points. There were a couple seconds left on the clock when Jamie makes his player do a 3 pointer with Jude's help. The doorbell interrupted their game and Lucas got up to get the pizza they had ordered.

They all ate peacefully and went back to the living room to watch some sport news. Lucas had gone to put Jude sleep and came back down just in time to hear a surprising report.

_"The Charlotte Bobcats are looking for one more player for the next season. It was confirmed that Nathan Scott was recruited. Could he be going back home? More about this shocking news in a few instants"_

The four sat in silence before Jamie suggested they should call Haley.

"I think you're right." Lucas agreed.

* * *

><p>Haley got to Rachel's house and walked in without bothering to knock. She made her way to Rachel's room screaming to the girls that she had arrived. She saw them sitting on the edge of the bed giving each other manicures.<p>

"Tutor Mom, you're here!" Brooke exclaimed.

"Hey. Seems like you two are having fun?"

"Yeah we were but now that you're here we can start our movie!" Rachel said as she grabbed Haley's hand and dragged her on the floor.

"Who knew you two could be best friends after high school." Brooke stated and they all laughed and remembered what made them bond.

_"Haley, help me." Brooke said as she helped a beat up Rachel walk into the back room at Tric._

_"Oh my god, what happened to her?" she asked as she helped Brooke with Rachel._

_"I don't know, I think she was assaulted, I found her like this outside."_

_"Wasn't she in L.A.?" Haley asked._

_"I guess she came back. This looks really bad Haley."_

_"It's okay, we're here for her now." Haley stated. Brooke smiled at her and nodded._

_Ever since that day, Rachel and Haley had become close and Rachel had developed a close relationship with Jamie._

"Who would have thought." They laughed again and continued watching their movie.

They were interrupted by Haley's cell phone ringing. Looking at Caller ID, she noticed it was Lucas. Worriedly, she answered it.

"Hello."

"Hey Hales, I think you should turn on the TV and put it on the sports channel, there's something important on there."

"Okay" She replied putting the phone under her ear as she changed the tv channel. Haley dropped her phone in shock as she read the headline.

_"Local Tree Hill star Nathan Scott's 5 years contract with the New York Knicks finished this season. He was given an offer with the Charlotte Bobcats for three years, making him come back home. It was confirmed earlier today that he accepted this offer saying 'It was going to let him come back home and fix some mistakes he should of fixed a long time ago.' Will he bring with him Famous Record Producer Peyton Sawyer? What about his past in Tree Hill where Sawyer also comes from. And what about Nathan's estranged-wife and his abandoned son?"_


	2. Don't Walk Away

**Hey guys, thank you so much for all the reviews and we hope you enjoy this next chapter! Enjoy! **

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><p>"Nathan wake up it's two in the afternoon." Peyton yelled as she jumped on his stomach causing him to let out a huge groan.<p>

"Ugh do I have to? I have a major hangover." He whined.

"Yes it's your fault: you went to that party and drank too much."

"Yeah but so did you and you don't seem to have a hangover." He mumbled.

"That's because I'm a girl and I'm more clever than you. Now get up and get dressed because we're going out." She told him.

"Where are we going?" He asked.

"You'll see." She smirked and left the room.

He groaned and pulled himself out of bed.

* * *

><p>About half an hour later, Nathan was finally dressed and walked down the stairs of his and Peyton's shared apartment. Walking into the kitchen he asked. "I'm ready, where are we going?"<p>

"Oh, no where I just wanted you to get up." She smirked and moved her hand towards him. She dropped two pain killers into his hand and gave him a glass of water. "That should help your hangover."

She passed by him and headed for the living room. He laughed and followed her to the couch. He sat down next to her and she moved to lay down and place her feet on his lap.

"Do you sometimes wonder how life would have been if we would have made different choices back then?" She asked.

"Every day. I regret leaving Haley and Jamie but I guess back then I was still that arrogant jerk. At least now that the Bobcats offered me a job, I can go back and try to fix everything."

"Nathan, you do know that you can't just show up after 5 years and think that everything's going to be better." Peyton said.

"I know but Haley can't keep me from seeing my son and you and I both know that. When she left me for tour I forgave her." Nathan stated.

"Yes but you guys didn't have a child back then. Plus she was gone for two months, not five years. She's probably not going to let you see him after what you did and when you go come back, I'm not going to be there to comfort you. " She stated before continuing. "I still can't believe she did that." Peyton said reflecting on the tour once more.

"She can't keep me from seeing my son. If she does, I'm not going to go down without a fight." He added, "Peyton you can't run from everyone forever"

"I'm not running from anyone, I just don't want to go back home. I'm happy here."

"Admit it Peyton, you just don't want to confront Lucas." Nathan said as he got up and headed back to the kitchen. Peyton quickly followed him. "You have no right to say that to me because you're in the same position as I am." She said looking him dead in the eye, offended, as she opened the fridge and threw a grape at him. He turned around just in time to get hit by the small fruit. He laughed and a grape fight followed. They were interrupted by a knock on the door and Jr. running through the house.

"Ahhhhh" Screamed the little 6 years old boy as he tried to tackle Nathan.

"Hey Jr., where's your dad?" Peyton asked the little boy. Tim soon came in holding a very pregnant Bevin by the side.

"There's my answer." She replied as she grabbed a bottle of water and passed it to Bevin, who sat on the nearest chair.

"So, how much longer?" Nathan asked his former best friend.

"A couple of weeks." He laughed.

Nathan and Peyton had accidentally bumped into Bevin at a basketball game. She had told the two that she had married Tim Smith and together had a son named Nathan Jr. Smith, whom they call Jr.

Nathan and Tim took a seat at the table while Jr. went to play some NBA live. The four started talking until another knock at the door interrupted them. Clay walked in hand in hand with his wife, Sara Evans, and caring his young son, Logan, in his other arm.

"I'm hurt, you invited them but not us?" He joked. Everyone laughed and the two took a seat joining the conversation, they set Logan down to play with Jr.

"So Nate I have the tickets set. We should be leaving town on Tuesday. Don't forget that's two days from now. Everything is arranged: the house is bought and furnished. There are four rooms, three bathrooms, a basketball court and a pool like you asked." Clay told Nathan.

Clay had been Nathan's agent for over four years now. They had become very good friends throughout the years.

"Thanks man." He answered patting his agent's back.

"I'm jealous. You by him a huge house while we still live in a crowded two bedroom apartment." Sara told her husband.

"I'm not for paying the house, he is, and with the salary he gets, he has no problem affording it." Clay stated.

"Hey about that, since I'm moving back to Tree Hill and you have to come, my dad gave me his beach house when he went to prison and I thought you two could have it." Nathan said. Sara looked speechless and turned her attention to her husband, who had the same shocked expression.

"Nathan, you don't have to do that, I can just rent a little house by-" Clay was interrupted by Nathan who told him it was a gift from him. Clay and Sara thanked him and they all got back to their conversation.

* * *

><p>A couple hours later, Bevin, Tim and Jr. said their goodbyes and left to do other things.<p>

Clay, Sara, and Logan left not long after, leaving Nathan and Peyton alone. They sat in the living room in silence until Nathan broke it.

"You're coming with me to Tree Hill right?" Nathan asked looking over at her.

"Nathan, I don't know, I have the label here and-"

"And some more excuses. Listen, if you and Lucas were meant to be together, he's still going to be single. Plus, you get to see Brooke again.." He stated.

"Me and Brooke… we haven't talked in 4 years and she's probably moved on with her life. Lucas probably did too."

Nathan looked at her and sighed. "Obviously, there's nothing I can do to make you change your mind. I'll be upstairs, don't bother me unless it's to tell me you're coming back to Tree Hill." He got up and left Peyton alone in the living room. Am I doing the right thing, she wondered.

After a couple hours of sitting in the living room by herself, she locked herself in her room and sank to the floor. She cried. She cried about everything in her life that only seemed to be going wrong.

* * *

><p><strong>I could never leave you<strong>

**Even you if you asked me to**

**I could never say goodbye**

**And make you cry**

_Haley was playing on the floor with a 3 years old Jamie when Nathan walked in. He sat on the couch and took a deep breath._

_"How would you like to move to New York?" He asked. Haley looked up stunned and asked. "What? I don't know. New York is a big city and I don't think I would like it there. Why are you asking?"_

_"The Knicks offered me a place to play in the NBA. We did it Haley! I finally got an offer and it's in New York." He said._

_"Wow, Nathan." She whispered. "It's just so far away."_

_"But Haley, I thought you wanted me to pursue my dream? I thought that moving to New York would let you catch up with Brooke and Peyton."_

_"Yeah, but what about Jamie? What about Lucas, Karen and Lily? What about our life here?" Haley asked picking Jamie up from the floor._

_"Jamie's going to come with us and you can come visit them whenever you want. We'll have the money to travel." He tried to reason._

_"Nathan, I don't think I'm ready for such a big move. I don't want to leave Tree Hill. This is where I want our son to grow up not in New York." She replied walking to the kitchen and placing Jamie on the counter._

_"Haley, I… This is what I've, no we've, been hoping for and now that I have it, you don't want me to follow my dreams?"_

_"Nathan! That's not what I'm saying." She shouted at him._

_"Yeah it is, Haley." He got up, took his keys and open the door and stopped when he heard Haley one last time._

_"Nathan, if you walk out that door, I swear you're not coming back." She threatened._

_That was the last time she saw her husband._

**I could never stumble**

**With you walkin by my side**

**I could never love you**

**More than I already do**

**So don't walk away**

**Don't walk away**

**Don't lie, tell me that you're gonna stay**

**Please don't walk away**

**If I made a promise**

**I would stay by your side**

**Its only the beginning**

**I love you**

_Karen had been watching Jamie for the past few days to help Haley out. Haley sat on her couch waiting for Nathan to call back. He had left just a few days ago, and Haley had just shut out everyone from her life._

_She sat alone on the floor of her living room waiting for him to come back. She heard a knock on the door and looked up. She pushed herself off of the floor before making her way to to answer the door. Lucas stood on the other side with his arms wide opened. He hugged his best friend and whispered to her that everything would be okay._

**So don't walk away**

**Don't walk away**

**Don't lie, tell me that youre gonna stay**

**Please don't walk away**

**Please dont walk away**

_Haley was holding Jamie with one arm, waiting for Nathan to come out of practice. She smiled at her son and kissed the top of his head. She turned away from the door and looked to see if Nathan was outside._

_He walked behind Haley and took her in his arms. She turned around, startled and kissed him. Heading towards the car, Jamie stretched his arm and pointed towards a couple of boys playing basketball._

_"Ball." He said. Haley looked at her son, shocked, and smiled at Nathan. "Nathan he just said ball, he just said his first word! Say it again baby, say ball." She insisted. Nathan smiled at his son and took him from his mother's arms._

_"You're a big boy, you said ball." He said to his son._

**When all the road is dark and dreary**

**You know my nature does not sway**

**This disposition must be washed away forever**

**So please don't walk away**

**Please don't walk away**

**Please dont walk away**

**But I could never leave you**

**Even if you asked me to**

**No, I could never say goodbye**

**Or make you cry**

* * *

><p><strong>The song used was Don't Walk Away by Bethany Joy Lenz and the one last chapter was Alone by Celine Dion.<strong>


	3. Demons

**Hey guys were are back again for another update, thanks for all your reviews and we forgot to mention that we recommend you listen to the title song. It will help you get more out of the story and we promise that each song used is very relevant to Nathan and Haley. We searched long and hard for songs that fit perfectly and if you listen you will see what we mean.**

**This chapters song is Demons by Imagine Dragons.**

* * *

><p><em>When the days are cold<em>

_And the cards all fold_

_And the saints we see_

_Are all made of gold_

It had been a few weeks and the news was out. Nathan Scott was back in town. Haley dreaded the moment when she was going to run into him. She avoided going places she knew he'd go. She only left the house to go to work or take Jamie to school.

_When your dreams all fail_

_And the ones we hail_

_Are the worst of all_

_And the blood's run stale_

Jamie knew his dad was in town and he wasn't sure how he felt about that. Sure, he dreamed about the moment where his dad would come back in his life and he had dreamed of his family being reunited. He loved his mom to death and he'd seen what Nathan had done to her. He'd convinced himself that having any affection for him would be bad, but he couldn't help it. Nathan was still his father.

The weekend came along and Haley was making pancakes when the doorbell rang. Hales froze in her spot and watched as Jamie ran yelling, "I'll get it!" Jamie opened the door and smiled as he saw his Aunt Rachel. "Well, no hug for your aunt?"

He put his arms around her waist and gave her a hug while she passed her hand through his hair. "Dude, have you grown? 'Cause I'm sure last time I saw you, you were smaller."

"Aunt Rachel, you saw me yesterday." He looked at her and laughed, as they both made their way to Haley.

"Hello Hales."

"Rach, hi what are you doing here?" Haley made the last pancake and set them on the table.

"I'm here for the free food, duh." She took a pancake and high fived Jamie.

Haley glared at her and sat down with them, "Wouldn't be the first time you invite yourself over for breakfast."

She smiled brightly and took a bite of her food, "Hales, this is like really good."

"Alright, spill Rachel, what do you want?"

"What makes you think I want something?" She denied.

Jamie spoke, with a mouthful, "Because you always want something when you bring out the compliments."

"Jamie, don't speak with your mouth full." Haley warned, he swallowed and mumbled sorry.

"Okay, well Brooke and Lucas are out of town until sometime next week with Jude, and I'm bored out of my mind. I came here to drag your fat ass with me to the mall, because I need new shoes."

"You tell me they're out of town like I don't know, I do live with them." Haley sat back on her chair and crossed her arms. "You wouldn't have come all this way just to ask me to go shopping with you, you could have called."

Jamie turned to his aunt and asked her, "Why are you really here Rach?"

Rachel gave Haley the eyes and Haley looked at Jamie. "Jimmy Jam can you go up to your room for a bit while Aunt Rachel and I talk? Please."

Jamie let out an over exaggerated sigh as he walked down the hall to his room. Haley watched him walk away and when he closed his bedroom door she turned around and looked at Rachel, "So, what is it? I know that look."

"I walked into him. I was at the cafe and he was there."

Haley looked down and tried to think of something to say. "It was bound to happen someday, I mean it was obvious he was going to come back eventually. I just never thought it would be this hard."

"Haley, you're one of the strongest person I know. I know you'll figure out how to manage this situation."

"Did you speak with him?"

Rachel took a sip of water and said, "No, I was in the back helping Karen, but I don't think he saw me." She paused. "And Peyton was there too."

"Mom!" Jamie shouted, running down the stairs.

"What Jimmy Jam?" She asked looking to see what the problem was.

"I'm bored can we go to the river court please?"

Looking into his eyes that looked just like his father's she sighed. "Sure buddy, go get your ball and meet us at the door."

_I wanna hide the truth_

_I wanna shelter you_

_But with the beast inside_

_There's nowhere we can hide_

"Haley are you sure? I can take him myself if you want to-" Rachel led off.

"No it's fine, I can't hide out forever, it's a small town we are bound to run into each other sometime."

* * *

><p><em>No matter what we breed<em>

_We still are made of greed_

_This is my kingdom come_

_This is my kingdom come_

Nathan walked into his house, well his father's house. He walked around for a while remembering the stuff he'd done in this house. It felt good to be home. Peyton had met him at the airport saying she wanted to go home. And so together they flew back to their hometown. She left to get settled in at her dad's house. He'd seen her once since they had arrived and it had been to get a coffee at Karen's cafe.

That's when they'd ran into Rachel, who apparently worked there. At first Nathan was shocked at how she had changed, he had to admit it was for the best. He hadn't thought she saw him and just felt awkward because everyone was staring at him so he quickly left.

He lay on his old bed, the entire room was like shrine to him. It looked just as it had when he left it. He saw his old basketball lying on his shelf. He got up, took it and went to the only place he could think of: the river court.

He put on his workout clothes and headed out. It felt good to be back, to smell the fresh air, the trees. He decided to take the long way to the Rivercourt, stopping by where he and Haley used to live.

He stared at the door, to their old house for a while wondering if she still lived there. He waited for a while and eventually an old man walked up to him asking, "Are you looking to rent?"

Nathan looked up at the old man, it was the same man they had rented the apartment from years ago. "No thank you, I used to live here."

The old man nodded and started to walk away but he called out after him, "Does Haley James Scott still live here?"

The old man turned around and closed his eyes at the sound of her name. "That poor girl, she was really sweet. Her and her son came to help me sometimes, she was something. It's a shame, what happened. She moved out many years back but she had it hard. They said she wouldn't go out; she wouldn't speak to anyone after her husband left her. Poor girl was a mess, I hope she turned out okay. And I hope she got her son back, her sister in-law or someone close to her had to take the poor boy away. He didn't even understand what was happening."

Nathan looked speechless but was glad the old man didn't recognize him. He whispered something to the man and walked away. He shook his head and continued his path to the river court.

It was his fault. He tried to process what the old man had told him and he got hit with guilt. But then, he thought about what had happened 5 years ago, she'd pushed him away. She had been the one to kick him out and ignored his calls. But every time he looked back at those moments, he knew he should have fought harder for Haley and for Jamie.

Jamie, he thought about how his son might be. Was he tall? Was he short? What was he like? He'd missed out on so much and he wanted to make up for lost time.

Nathan dribbled the ball slowly as he walked, in no rush to get anywhere but stopped just as the river court was in sight. He couldn't believe what he saw in front of him. There stood Haley with Rachel, laughing and smiling as they threw around the ball with Jamie. God Jamie, he was so big and handsome. Haley was more beautiful than she was the day he left. How was that even possible? Then he heard her let out a heartfelt gut wrenching laugh. God how he missed that. How could he leave that? He thought to himself. You walked away from that, you left them.

"Momma, I'm hungry." Jamie said.

"Well so am I Jimmy-Jam, how about we got visit Aunt Karen, the lunch rush is over so she probably is bored."

"Yes, can we get the food of the gods?"

"Sure."

"You two are crazy." Rachel laughed shaking her head.

"No we aren't." They both said in unison. Nathan quickly hid behind a bush so they didn't see him. He could have walked out and said hello but he wasn't ready. Running his hand through his hair he let out a deep breath. He wasn't ready to see her again, to be back here again after the way he left and seeing all of this made his heart ache.

He stayed at the River court and when the night sky started to fall, he decided it was time to go home. Clay and Sara were supposed to come meet him in Tree Hill in a few days.

He fell asleep picturing his son and Haley, and her laugh.

_When you feel my heat_

_Look into my eyes_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_Don't get too close_

_It's dark inside_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

* * *

><p>It was a chilly day in Tree Hill and Tree Hill High had shut down because of a water leak. Rachel had to go into Charlotte for a meeting for Brooke's clothing company, since she couldn't make it so Haley had decided to take Rachel's shift at the Cafe.<p>

She was cleaning a table when she heard the door chime.

"Take a seat, I'll be right with you"

_At the curtain's call_

_It's the last of all_

_When the lights fade out_

_All the sinners crawl_

She looked up and could not believe her eyes. She knew this moment would come, she just thought she'd be more prepared or that she'd run into him in the street but not here, of all places.

She dropped the empty glass she had in her hands and it shattered on the floor. "Nathan" She whispered.

"Hi Hales." He whispered taking a deep breath.

"Don't Hales me, you lost that right when you walked out the door 5 years ago." She said angrily, bending down to pick up the broken glass pieces.

"Haley please-" He was cut off by her cursing as blood dripped from her finger.

"Here, let me help you, you're hurt." He bent down to where she was and if looks could kill, he'd be dead.

Haley was happy the cafe was empty, she wouldn't want to make a show in front of her clients. He grabbed her hand and that's when she felt it, those sparks. After 5 years they were still there and she knew from the look on his face, he had felt it too.

Those damn sparks, she wanted them to go away. She was angry, furious with him, but they would just not leave her alone. She pulled her hand back and said, "What do you want?"

"My family back."

Haley looked up at him, a part of her awed at the fact that he did come back, that after all those years of losing hope, he had finally come back. Because he wanted his family. For a brief second, she let her emotions get over her, lust filled her eyes.

Nathan stared at her, he smiled, that damn smile would be the end of her. He'd taken her hand again, pressure a paper towel on it to stop the bleeding and she got lost in his eyes, those eyes she saw everyday in Jamie.

Slowly, as he felt the same thing she did, he moved in to kiss her. She didn't fight him, she didn't push him off, but only kissed him back, years of longing, desperation, want fueling them on. It was only then that Haley realized what was going on, she quickly pulled back, surprising Nathan before surprising him again with a quick slap in the face.

"What the hell?"

"You don't get to say stuff like that to me. You don't get to look at me like that. You don't get to kiss me. You don't get to miss me! Don't try to pull me in my your good looks and charm because it won't work. You left Nathan, you made that choice and walked out the door so don't make me pity you because I won't. I hate you and everything about you aside from the fact that you gave me my son."

"Our son" Nathan corrected.

"Oh no, you walked out on our son, he isn't our son anymore, he is MINE."

_So they dug your grave_

_And the masquerade_

_Will come calling out_

_At the mess you've made_

Tears filled her eyes, she didn't want to have this conversation now, especially not here. For the past few weeks, she'd planned what she was going to say to him, but now, none of it mattered because she was dumbfounded. She just wanted him to take his basketball, his career and go away.

But, she wasn't that lucky.

"Haley, whether you like it or not, he's still my son. And if I remember correctly, you pushed me away. For years, you encouraged me to pursue my career, you were willing to go with me. And then, when I finally told you I had made it, you backed out and you refused to consider the option of us moving to New York. You could have been with your two best friends, we could have made it Hales."

"Don't, don't act like I'm the bad guy here, because I'm not. YOU walked away, I told if you walked out that door we were done and you did."

"I did because I knew you were fuming, and over the years, I've learned that it was best to leave you think about things when you were angry."

_Don't wanna let you down_

_But I am hell bound_

_Though this is all for you_

_Don't wanna hide the truth_

_No matter what we breed_

_We still are made of greed_

_This is my kingdom come_

_This is my kingdom come_

The tears filled her eyes and she didn't want to fight them back, because she was crushed. She was falling deep, like she had when he had left. She was going down memory lane, places she hoped to forget. Her worst days.

"I wanted you to fight for me: us. Jamie and I, the poor kid. Did you not think about him? When you left, without even saying goodbye? He was distraught Nathan, do you know what it was like when he found out? No, it broke my heart and you broke his and for that I will never forgive you."

_When you feel my heat_

_Look into my eyes_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

_Don't get too close_

_It's dark inside_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

"Haley, please. I tried to see him, I pictured us as a family living together. How did we get like this? I wanted him to come home, I never wanted to leave him. I love him more than anything, he's my world. You are too."

"Nathan, I'm asking you politely to leave and never come back into mine or Jamie's life. We're perfectly fine living without you. Jamie has lots of people who love him and he has amazing father figures, he doesn't need you."

He looked at her, he wanted to wipe away her tears and tell her it was going to be alright but she pulled her head back and took her hand away. "Haley, he must have asked about me? Does he even know who I am?"

She looked up at him and she wanted to yell, to scream out all her anger but she kept her cool. She didn't want to attract more attention than they already had. "Yes, he did. And he knows who you are and he knows what you've done. He knows what happened to me and he understands all of it. And he doesn't want anything to do with you. "

"Haley please don't do this, don't cut me out from his life, imagine if I did that to you? Please just give me a chance… I'm sorry okay, I live with that guilt every day and I just want to make up for it." He said as he started to cry. "I love him and I love you. Please let me see him."

"I can't Nathan… I won't put him through that."

_They say it's what you make_

_I say it's up to fate_

_It's woven in my soul_

_I need to let you go_

He was frustrated, arguing he could take, but the thought of not being able to see his son again, that he couldn't. He was still his father and if she wouldn't let him, this was the only solution. "Then fine, I'm going to court for joint custody."

He didn't want to but he had to. He looked at her once more in the eyes before leaving the cafe.

* * *

><p>She hadn't moved, she hadn't eaten, she hadn't cared for herself. After leaving the cafe, she'd made a quick call to Chuck's mom and asked if Jamie could stay over while she had stuff to fix. His mom had gladly accepted, not asking further questions. That was hours ago and she was still lying in her bed, dreading life. Everything was so good for the two of them, for once Jamie was having a normal life.<p>

_Your eyes, they shine so bright_

_I wanna save that light_

_I can't escape this now_

_Unless you show me how_

The words kept replaying in her mind, he wanted joint custody. She was going to fight hard not to let him have it, but she feared, in that moment that she might lose her son forever. If people went digging in her past and what she had done, what she had been after Nathan's departure, no one would want to give her custody. She feared that the judge would see her as an invalid parent and decide to give Nathan full custody instead of joint.

She wasn't going to let that happen, she didn't want to lose her son to that bastard. Who did he think he was anyways, to just drop by and claimed what wasn't his.

"I can't let him take you Jimmy Jam" She whispered to herself.

She got up and dressed herself. She put her hair up in a messy bun and brushed her teeth. She made herself, somewhat decent looking, grabbed her keys and walked out of the house. She knew she would never win the case if it went to court, there was just one way to stop that from happening.

She knew it's where he would have moved: the Scott mansion was left inhabited for over 5 years but now that Nathan was back in town, he would have moved in there or the beach house.

She figured she'd try there first. She inhaled deeply and made herself walk to the front porch. She stood there, for a while, thinking if this is really what she wanted to do.

She gathered up her courage and knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. After a couple of minutes, she figured no one would be home and she turned around to walk away. She could try the beach house, but she wanted to avoid going there. It would bring bad so many bad memories.

Just as she walked away, the front door opened.

"Haley, what are you doing here?" He was in his pyjama bottoms and without a t-shirt. She tried to keep her focus, she knew she shouldn't be staring but she missed his body. But she was smarter than that.

"Can you please put a shirt on?"

Nathan smirked and walked in to grab a t-shirt that was laying around. He put it on quickly and when he came back to the door, Haley recognized it. It was a shirt she had given him. She couldn't believe he still had it, after all these years.

"Do you want to come in?" He asked, politely.

"No thanks, I'm perfectly fine out here." He shrugged and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I have a proposition for you." She said quickly as he raised an eyebrow. "No not like that, mind out of the gutter. You can see Jamie once a week for a few hours, until he feels comfortable I am staying with you guys as long as you don't take me to court."

Nathan stepped back in surprise "Why are you doing this?"

_When you feel my heat_

_Look into my eyes_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_

"Because I know I won't win..." She led off biting her lip.

"Wow, thank you." He said still shocked not even wondering why she wouldn't win.

"But I swear to God Nathan if you screw this up or you hurt him, I will kill you." She threatened.

"I won't Haley I promise, I'm here for good, I'm not going anywhere."

Haley nodded solemnly "Good. Meet us at the rivercourt tomorrow at ten." She said before walking away.

_Don't get too close_

_It's dark inside_

_It's where my demons hide_

_It's where my demons hide_


	4. Breathe Me

**Once again thanks for the reviews, since this chapter is so short we will update a third time this week on Saturday.**_  
><em>

**This chapter's song is Breathe Me by Sia, a personal favorite of both Jen and I.**

* * *

><p><em>Help, I have done it again<em>

_I have been here many times before_

_Hurt myself again today_

_And the worst part is there's no one else to blame_

She'd been having trouble keeping up with life. Most of the time, her mind was wandering elsewhere and she barely paid attention to anyone, even Jamie. She wasn't doing it on purpose, ever since Nathan had left her, she had lost total control over her mind.

Just the week before, she had set her piano on fire. It haunted her, to stare at it. She pictured it as a reminder of what she had had with Nathan and she hated it. After a bottle or two of alcohol, she'd purposely spilled the bottle on the instrument and dropped a candle on it. She sat there, watching it burn, trying to feel something.

She could have burned the whole house. It could have killed her.

It could have killed her son who was in the other room, napping.

She stared at it for minutes until something in her brain made her realize that Jamie's was the other room and if the fire spread, she'd kill her baby boy. She had gotten up and killed the fire with a blanket.

Then, she'd spent her days staring at the burnt piano. The darkness of it fascinated her.

She'd brought Jamie to Brooke's house to have him babysitter and spent a little longer saying goodbye to him.

"I love you Jamie. Always remember that. I love you and I'm sorry for everything. I hope you'll understand one day." She placed a kiss on his forehead and said goodbye to her friend. She got in her car and drove around the town for a while.

She was delusional.

She didn't know what to feel anymore, she wasn't feeling anything and she was just tired. Tired of everything. She was tired of spending her days wanting the love of her life back.

She was tired of breathing.

She stopped at a red light and looked around. The streets were empty and quiet. There was no one outside, no other cars in the way. She took a deep breath and pressed on the gas when the light was still red.

She was tired and she wanted all her pain to go away and at that time, she thought this was the only way to do it.

She accelerated and didn't stop.

She passed a few red lights but there was no one on the streets for it to matter.

She lost control of her car.

It crashed into a tree.

She thought she'd succeeded as she passed out.

_Be my friend_

_Hold me, wrap me up_

_Unfold me_

_I am small and needy_

_Warm me up_

_And breathe me_

All she heard was the beeping of the medical equipment around her. Her eyes were still closed but she heard people talk around her. She couldn't make out their voices, everything was still a little confusing. All she knew was that she was in pain and that she had failed._ Even hell doesn't want me,_ she thought. She waited until the voices disappeared before trying to open her eyes.

She blinked multiple times and she heard a familiar voice, "Haley? Haley?"

The light blinded her and she closed them again before opening them and waiting as her eyes adjusted to the lighting of the room. "Haley? Can you hear me?"

She mumbled something but Brooke didn't understand. "What did you say Haley?"

"Yes." She said a little more clearly.

Her eyes opened and she's stared at a worried Brooke. "How are you feeling?"

"In pain."

Haley remembered very clearly what had happened. She'd purposely crashed her car in hopes to die. Everybody probably knew by then. It was a small town and the streets were empty. She was driving way above the speed limit and the police had ruled her accident as a suicide attempt.

"Haley, talk to me." Brooke held her friend's hand. "Why?"

Haley took a deep breath but she was unable to talk. There was just too much going on in her head for her to formulate a complete sentence. She just whispered "I don't know."

"Haley, I'm here. If you need to talk. Don't throw your life away. Please, Jamie needs you." She told her.

Then it hit her, what had happened to her son?

"Jamie? Where is Jamie?" She's panicked now.

_Ouch I have lost myself again_

_Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found,_

_Yeah I think that I might break_

_I've lost myself again and I feel unsafe_

She couldn't even see her own child. She was sitting up in her hospital bed when Brooke came in the room. "Hey Haley."

She looked up but she didn't smile, "Can I see Jamie?"

It hurt Brooke to see her best friend like that. "Social services still have him. They're presenting the case to the court." She explained. "They've come up with a verdict."

"A verdict? Why would they need a verdict?" Her voice broke.

"You're not in the mental state to take care of him." Brooke told her.

"But I need my son!" She yelled.

"And he needs him mom too, but not until you get better."

"Who has him?"

"They've given Lucas and I Jamie's custody." She said. "We'll take care of him, until you get better."

Haley should have been happy that Jamie wasn't being sent off to people he didn't know. She should be glad Brooke and Lucas were taking him but a part of her felt betrayed.

"No! You can't! He's mine. He's my son! You can't take him away!" She yelled and started thrashing in the bed, ignoring the pain.

Her son was taken away from her and there was nothing she could do about it.

Some doctors came in to try and calm her down and Brooke was forced to leave the room. She watched from the window of the door and cried. How could this have happened? She thought. Nothing was right anymore.

_Be my friend_

_Hold me, wrap me up_

_Unfold me_

_I am small and needy_

_Warm me up_

_And breathe me_

They put her in therapy and eventually they medicated her. She didn't try to get better at first. She was used to living with the sadness and the thought of being happy again scared her. The only thing that kept her alive was her son. She hadn't seen him since before the accident. They still wouldn't let her see him. Brooke would bring pictures and videos when she would visit her. It hurted her to see Brooke raise her child. She knew Lucas and Brooke would treat Jamie wonderfully but it felt wrong. She should be there with them. She should have her son with her. He was the only piece of Nathan she had left.

The first few months were hell. Sometimes, she felt like she was losing her mind and if she didn't get out of there soon she'd go crazier than she already was.

By the 6th month, she'd accepted the therapy even if it didn't help that much. She just needed to make them believe it did. They eventually let her see her son. Brooke and Lucas came to visit her with Jamie. He had grown so much since she had last seen him and she cried. She'd missed half a year of his life.

"Hi baby, you remember me?" She smiled for the first time in months.

"Mama." Jamie smiled as he lunged to hug his mother. "I miss you."

That gave Haley the push she needed to get better. Her son needed her.

_Be my friend_

_Hold me, wrap me up_

_Unfold me_

_I am small and needy_

_Warm me up_

_And breathe me_

She got released after a year. She was healthy again. She had found joy in the little things she didn't like anymore. She felt different but more importantly, they were letting her get Jamie back.

"You'll need to live under supervision for the first year. Social services will follow with you for the first months or so and you will need to report back to them." She signed a lot of paperwork and eventually, she moved in with Brooke and Lucas.

It was sort of a way for them to make sure Haley was doing okay and that she wasn't going to wake up one morning feeling depressive again. They wanted to be there for her and they wanted to make sure Jamie was always going to be okay.

Jamie didn't understand why his mom was gone for a whole year but he was just glad to have her back. He'd missed his mother.


	5. Jar Of Hearts

Jamie sat in the back of the car, anxious to finally meet his dad. His last memories of him were on pictures he had seen and what the media would show. He felt bad that he was this excited to see the man who had caused his mother so much misery, but a part of him wanted to get to know his father.

"Mom, are you sure it's alright?"

Haley looked up in the rearview mirror and smiled, "I'm sure Jamie, if you want to meet him we'll give him a chance. Just, don't get disappointed if he isn't like you pictured him." Jamie nodded and looked out the window letting out a small smile seeing Nathan Scott on the rivercourt playing around with a basketball.

"Mom, what if..." He started.

"Go have fun Jamie" She smiled back at him. "Don't worry about me because you aren't going to hurt me. If you love your father, I won't feel like you love me any less." She said and turned around to face him as she put the car in park. Haley then moved around to get out of the car, opening his door for him as he nearly jumped out. Haley would feel hurt if Jamie loved Nathan. It would hurt her that Nathan would get to know Jamie and be loved by him when he didn't deserve it, but she couldn't say that too her son. At this moment he needed her words of encouragement more than she needed to stop hurting.

He turned around, "I love you mom."

"I know buddy, go have fun." She smiled, biting her lip as she went, hoping Nathan was serious and wouldn't hurt him again.

Jamie nodded and walked towards Nathan, who'd now noticed his presence. "Hey there Jamie."

Jamie smiled and whispered, "Hi." He was feeling shy all of a sudden. He looked back at his mom, who urged him to go and he inhaled deeply watching her sit on the picnic table.

"How are you doing bud?"

"Good."

"You're mom said you like to play basketball right?"

"Yeah" Jamie said as his eyes lit up.

"Do you want to play a game then?"

"Sure." Jamie shrugged before stealing the ball from his dad. Jamie was really short and Nathan thought it was quite adorable. Nathan was twice his size, probably even more and Jamie knew if they'd actually play a game that Nathan would try to play fair by letting him win.

"Don't underestimate my size and don't think that because I'm 8, it's okay for you to pretend to lose."

"I wasn't planning on it." Nathan laughed. Jamie was just like him at this age.

"Yes you were and that's okay." Jamie said dribbling. "But you're about to lose."

"Okay then." Nathan chuckled as they started to play. Nathan looked over at Haley and smiled, she nodded back to him.

_No, I can't take one more step towards you_

_'Cause all that's waiting is regret_

_Don't you know I'm not your ghost anymore_

_You lost the love I loved the most_

The sky was getting dark and Haley sat on the picnic table watching Nathan and Jamie play. They'd been playing a game for hours and Haley hated to admit that she was glad to see Jamie interact with his father. As the thundercloud rumbled Haley looked around the sky above her and the boys stopped playing. Haley got up from the table and called out for Jamie, "I think we should go home before the storm picks up."

Nathan nodded at rubbed Jamie's hair. "It was nice seeing you."

Jamie smiled, "It was."

He was about to walk away when Nathan called out for him. "Wait." Both Haley and Jamie turned around and Nathan walked forward. "Can I speak to Jamie for a minute before you go? Please?"

Haley nodded and Jamie walked forward. Nathan kneeled to his son's level and said "James, I know I haven't been a great father, and that I've been gone a long time. But I want you to know that I thought of you every single day and I do love you."

"You do?" Jamie asked looking up at him with his big blue eyes.

"Of course. I always will." Nathan said gently. "Could I...could I have a hug?"

Jamie smiled and nodded his head. He put his arms out and Nathan hugged his little boy. For the first time in years 5 years, Nathan felt like he had a purpose in life. Sure, playing basketball was amazing but nothing could be compared to caring for a child. His child.

_I learned to live half alive_

And now you want me one more time

Haley watched from far the scene and felt a warm feeling at heart. Deep down inside of her she wished someday they could be a family but she knew that her heart wasn't fully healed. Nathan had caused her too much pain but even if they were never going to get together again, her son would have the chance to have a relationship with his father. Jamie deserved that. He had been through so much and was the best son Haley could hope for.

"Haley could we talk real quick?" Nathan asked as Jamie started to walk off.

"Sure, Jamie, why don't you hop in the car?"

"Okay mom, bye." Jamie said with a nod towards Nathan, not sure what to call him.

"Bye Jamie."

"What's up?" Haley asked placing her hands in her pockets as she walked closer to Nathan, yet keeping her distance.

"Thank you for this… it was amazing. Thank you for letting me into his life."

"Of course Nathan."

"Could we do it again?"

"Sure whenever. Just call me, I have the same number as before and we can set something up. He deserves to have his father. Just don't leave again Nathan, he deserves better than that."

"I won't I promise." He said sincerely. "But could we meet up some time, just the two of us?"

Haley thought about it for a moment. She wondered if she could manage being alone with him. Her brain wanted to say no but her heart screamed yes. She looked him in the eyes. Oh those blue eyes that made her fall at his feet from the moment they met.

"Nathan, I…" She paused. "Not right now, I'm not ready."

"Please just to talk. Please." He pleaded.

"Fine." She sighed. "Jamie is going bowling with Rachel tomorrow so I'll meet you here at 11." Somewhere public she thought. So things don't get too messy.

"Thank you Haley." She smiled and walked away, taking Jamie's hand in the process.

Nathan stood there, watching them walk away and whispered to himself, "Don't screw this up."

_And who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_So don't come back for me_

_Who do you think you are?_

"Bye Jamie, have fun with Rachel." She waved and watched as Rachel drove away with her son. Every now and then, it still hurt her to see people drive away with her son because it reminded her of that night many years back when they'd taken her baby away from her.

She waited until they were out of sight before picking up her bag and rushing out the door. She was late, not that she minded. Missing him wouldn't bother her but she knew she'd said she'd be there. She looked at the clock, a quarter past eleven. She locked the front door and left the house.

Brooke and Lucas weren't back yet and she still had the house to herself. She got in her car and drove to the rivercourt as quickly as she could.

Meanwhile, Nathan arrived at the rivercourt early. It was ten in the morning and he was already there, shooting some baskets. He was anxious to see Haley with no minor in the room. Not for the obvious reasons but to finally be able to speak with her, to make things clear on this arrangement they had.

If it even was an arrangement. Nathan didn't even know what to think. Nathan really had no paper saying he had rights to his son. Sure they had never gone to court over it, but if Haley wanted to she could stop him from seeing Jamie. He wanted legal rights to his son but for some reason Haley feared the court. He wanted to ask her about it, to understand why he couldn't get part of the custody but he feared that she'd only get mad if he asked.

Not too long after he'd arrived at the rivercourt, Peyton had showed up telling him not to screw this meeting with Haley.

"I know, I've been telling myself that since I arrived." He'd told her before shooting a basket.

"You're trying to get her back, aren't you?" She asked him.

He paused briefly and looked at the ball in his hands. Of course he was trying to get her back, she was the love of his life. She was his wife and the mother of his child. But he knew he'd hurt her too much to properly get her back. "I'm trying."

Peyton shook her head and they both waited, listening to the wind hitting the trees. Nathan was the first to speak up. "Have you spoken to Lucas?"

Peyton uncrossed her arms and passed a hand through her hair. "Haven't seen him. I think it's better like that."

"Peyton you can't hide out forever. You've got to face him some day."

"I know and when that day comes I'll do it. But there's no need to rush into it." Nathan let out a sigh and walked towards his best friend. He sat down next to her on the picnic table. "Do you ever wonder how we've landed here?" He looked at the river behind him before looking back at her. "How we've managed to screw our lives this badly that we've got to work our way back in the people we love's lives."

"Every day." She took his hand and smiled at him. Because whenever times had been hard for both of them, they'd been there to support each other.

Haley parked her car near the rivercourt and looked at herself in the mirror. She could do this, she thought. It was only Nathan Scott, she'd seen him yesterday without breaking down. She knew she didn't have Jamie to support her but she could still do it.

She glanced towards the court and she could see him, standing there throwing the ball into the basket. She looked away for a moment before opening the door to her car and stepping out. She knew she was late but it's not like she had done it on purpose. Rachel had come to pick Jamie up later than planned. But he'd understand, it's not like she'd left for years and had came back unannounced.

She inhaled deeply before making her way to where he was standing, and when she got near him, she heard him say, "Hey Hales. How are you?".

"Good. Sorry I'm late. I really wasn't trying to do it on purpose, I promise."

He nodded, "I have to admit, I thought you were going to stand me up."

Haley ran her hand through her hair. "Rachel showed up late and then Jamie couldn't decide what snacks he wanted to bring with him."

"It's fine, don't worry about it."

They stood in an awkward silence for a while, neither knowing what to say.

"So uhh..." Nathan said looking at her up and down. "You look good."

She turned her head trying to hide her blush. Sometimes she just hated how her body didn't agree with her head. Nothing was suppose to happen between them. She was suppose to be angry at him forever.

"Thanks." She mumbled before heading down to sit on the bench.

"So what do you want to talk about?"

"Tell me about him. Tell me about what I've missed. I looked at him yesterday and it hurt me because I knew nothing about my son."

"Why should I?" She asked with a bitter tone, what did he do to deserve to know anything about Jamie?

"I want to make things right again, Haley. Even if it takes me years to prove to you that I'm here for the long run. Please, I'm trying."

Haley nodded solemnly. "Well, he loves basketball...But he's got this thing for baseball too. He has a bunny named Chester. He loves mac and cheese." She paused and Nathan smirked.

"Like mother like son." He said.

"He is incredibly smart and he loves basketball. He is caring and kind to everyone and he's amazing Nathan." She paused, "You really missed out on a lot. And he...he deserved a father Nathan, but you weren't there."

"Haley you can't put this all on me."

"Nathan...who else would it fall on, you're the one that left."

He let out a frustrated sigh, "But you were suppose to come with me. It was suppose to be me, you and Jamie. I had this perfect plan, we had this plan. We'd been working so hard to give Jamie the life he deserved. We worked hard so I could get a basketball career and you wanted it for me. And when the time came you backed down, it's what we wanted. But you backed down and I lost my son because of it."

"You left when I said I wouldn't go. You wanted me to move thousands of miles with a baby to be by myself most of the time while you had practices, games, away games, and bonding with the guys. I couldn't do that."

"But that's the thing Hales, you wouldn't have been alone. I would have been with you. I would have skipped some bonding, and practices if you and Jamie needed me. I love basketball but I love you and Jamie more than I could ever love the game."

"Nathan it was your first year you couldn't skip it! And think back you were out of the house from eight am to seven pm most days, and then on the days you went out even later."

"Haley we were teenagers with a child. One of us needed a career to pay for everything. Neither of us got to live."

"Yeah exactly. You would have gotten to see the world and have your dream job while I stared at our apartment walls. And what's to say you wouldn't upgrade to a newer model and dumped your wife and kid."

_I hear you're asking all around_

_If I am anywhere to be found_

_But I have grown too strong_

_To ever fall back in your arms_

"I love you Haley. I would have never dumped you. I tried being there, I wanted to let you live your dream. You wanted to be a teacher and I helped you prepare for interviews. You wanted a singing career and I offered you to pursue it but you dropped it to become a teacher, and I accepted that. I always helped you when it came to your job and supported you no matter what. I would have never left you Haley."

She passed a hand through her hair and said, "Don't you see Nathan? You did leave me. You left me and you left your son for a basketball career. And for the record, I dropped singing so I could be there more for Jamie, and my teaching career never came before him."

Nathan knew what he'd done was wrong. He'd left his child and his wife alone when he'd said he wouldn't. He'd left her alone to raise a child when they were children themselves. "I'm sorry Haley. I'm sorry I hurt you, and I'm sorry I hurt Jamie. But I'm here now. I came back as soon as I can. Every day when I was in New York I thought about you and I wanted to come home. But it was a 5 years contract and I couldn't go. I'm so sorry Haley. I really am."

"A little late for that." She huffed. "And I bet you really tried to come home didn't you?" She said sarcastically.

"Can we just move on from what happened and try to live our lives now? It's in the past and I want to get to know Jamie. I want to be in my son's life."

"Obviously I can't stop you from seeing your son Nathan. But so help me god if you hurt him, I promise you I will murder you. He's innocent and he's lived his whole life wondering what it would be like to have a father. Don't disappoint him."

"But what about us Haley?" He asked slowly, in a quiet tone.

_And I've learned to live half alive_

_And now you want me one more time_

"We're over Nathan." She said quickly. "I can't keep you from your son but I can keep us from getting back together. You ruined us. You lost that opportunity when you walked out on me."

"So that's it? You won't even give it a chance? You won't leave the possibility of giving your son a proper family? You don't think we can ever be a family again?

"Do not try to guilt me into this Nathan!" Haley fired at him, pointing a finger. "I won't give us a chance but that isn't because I did something wrong. You did. You walked out on our son leaving him without a proper family. You hurt me too bad and I won't let you break me again. You broke me before and I can't let you break me again because Jamie needs me."

Nathan started at her eyes, he could see the anger she felt through them. "Haley, please."

She shook her head. "You don't get to walk back in our lives and think nothing's changed. You don't get to think I'd just let you walk in again and we'd be a family. I got my son taken away from me because of you. I'm not going to /let it ruin me again. I'm done getting hurt by you and I won't let anything happen to Jamie."

"Taken away?" Nathan questioned.

Haley cursed at herself for going there. It was part of her past she didn't like talking about. She didn't want him to know how broken she was.

"You don't deserve to know...I think we're done here."

Haley sighed and turned to walk to her car. Just as she pulled the door open Nathan ran and stopped her, pushing between her and the door. "Please Haley." He pleaded. She looked into his eyes and got lost. He was so sincere in this very moment. "Just...let me in. Tell me. I'll understand."

_And who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_So don't come back for me_

_Who do you think you are?_

Haley looked into his blue eyes and she knew he was being honest. He wanted to help. Those blue eyes that made her heart melt. Over the years she'd built this wall around her and she wouldn't let it fall but when he looked at her that moment and asked to let him in, somehow he'd built a door in her wall.

"Okay" She whispered. He took her hand gently in his and led them to sit on the bleachers.

She sat down and he sat next to her. He contemplated holding her hand but decided it was better not to for the moment. He looked at her and she inhaled deeply. If she was going to tell him everything she was going to start from the beginning. "When you left that morning I stayed in the living room for the whole day waiting to see if you'd come back. I stayed there for days just waiting for you to walk through that door and say you were sorry."

Nathan shook his head in regret and sorrow. He really had broke her, and he felt terrible for it.

"At some point Brooke came in after a bunch of missed calls and she found me sitting in the living room and I wasn't there. I had completely isolated myself from everything. When you didn't show up I thought my life was over and the worst part is, I had forgotten Jamie. Our little boy who was so innocent was in the room next door and he had no idea what was happening. His dad had left him and his mom, well his mom was crazy."

Haley let out a soft chuckle. She hoped humor would ease into things. She had been crazy at some point in her life.

"Brooke came to stay with me for a few days so I could get used to this whole single parent thing. She helped me and when she thought I was better, she went back home. She passed by every day to make sure everything was fine, that I hadn't done anything stupid and that Jamie was okay." She paused, "Then about a month later Brooke came in telling me Peyton had gone to New York too and that Lucas had chased her. It was just the two of us for a few weeks until Lucas came back telling us he'd proposed to Peyton but she'd rejected his proposal and had stayed in New York. He was as devastated as I was but he got over it quickly, he had Brooke."

She smiled at the memory of Brooke coming in telling her Lucas had asked her out on a date. "Then things got better for them, worst for me."

"Haley, I'm so-" She shook her head. "Don't, don't be sorry."

He let her continue, "When Jamie's birthday came around I waited to see if you'd send him anything. If you'd call, if you'd show any sign of still caring and you didn't. I think that was the end of it. All that time I had kept hope that you'd remember us, me and your son and that you'd show that you still cared but when you never called, it killed me."

"Let's just say, the short version of this story is that I became depressed. I was young, I had a baby to take care of, I had school to manage and a husband who'd left me for basketball. I didn't want to live like this. I looked at Jamie and I felt horrible for putting him through this but I thought there was no other way. I thought I couldn't take care of him on my own. The first thing I did is I burnt my piano. I took alcohol and I burnt my piano with Jamie in the house. At the time I didn't think how stupid I was being, I was trying to feel something.

"At some point I realized what was happening and I put out the fire. Took a blanket and put it out. I spent days staring at the burnt piano until I decided to get rid of it. Brooke tried to take me out. She tried shopping and girly outings but nothing made me feel alive. I would look at Jamie sleep in the night and wonder why someone would leave such an innocent little boy." Haley held back the tears remembering what she'd done. She wasn't proud but she couldn't ignore her past. Our scars remind us that our past was real.

Nathan grabbed her head and squeezed it, reassuring her that it was okay to be weak sometimes.

"And I felt bad for him because he was stuck with me. He had a shit mom and no dad."

"I'm sure you weren't a shit mom." He looked at her and she shook her head, "I was."

_And it took so long just to feel alright_

_Remember how to put back the light in my eyes_

_I wish I had missed the first time that we kissed_

_'Cause you broke all your promises_

_And now you're back_

_You don't get to get me back_

"Months later I was still as messed up as before, maybe even worst. It's when I tried to kill myself and ended up in the hospital that things got messy. I was brought to court; Jamie was taken by social services. He lived with them for a while until they granted custody to his godparents, Brooke and Lucas. I was sent to some psychiatric hospital while our son was being raised by his godparents. I stayed there for many months before they let me out. Even then I couldn't have my son. After many attempts and problems I was better. I had figured out that it wasn't my fault you left and I had a son who needed his mother. But it wasn't enough. Jamie lived with them for a little over a year before I got his custody back. I fought hard for him because I wouldn't let him live without his parents. And when I got him back, the court told me I couldn't live alone. I had to live with someone who'd watch over me. That's when I moved in with Brooke and Lucas and when they had a kid of their own, we got a bigger house. I'm better now, I have full custody of Jamie, and I could have moved out from Lucas's house but it was home. We'd lived like that for a few years and it was nice."

"Haley." Nathan whispered. "I...It's my fault."

She couldn't hide it anymore. The tears rolled down her cheek and he raised his hand to wipe them. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I did this to you. I should have been there. I should have been there to take care of you and Jamie. I shouldn't have left. I'm so sorry Haley."

_And who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_So don't come back for me_

_Don't come back at all_

She looked at him and more tears fell. She wanted to hug him, kiss him even for coming back but at the same time she wanted to beat the crap out of him for putting her through so much shit.

"Don't touch me." She said quickly pulling back. "This is all your fault." She said discustfully.

He went to reassure her again but she just stared at him coldly, "Don't think that this gives you the right to come back into my life. What I said earlier is true. There's no place in my heart for you."

"Haley, please I can help. I'm here now for good."

"I don't need your help, not anymore." She said getting up. "I needed you five years ago but I don't now. I didn't tell you my past for your pity. I told you because you deserve to know the pain you but me and your son through after you left." She told him angrily.

"Haley you can't blame this all on me." He pleaded.

"I can and I will because it's all your fault." She spat out walking away and driving off.

_Who do you think you are?_

Lucas Scott was sitting on a stool at Karen's Cafe with Jude next to him, who was trying to get his hands on anything he could.

"Don't take that, Jude." Lucas told his son as he went to reach for a knife on the table. Lucas took the knife and any other harmful utensils and placed them out of Jude's reach.

The little boy whined before sitting back in his chair and looking around.

"Mommy?" He asked.

"She'll be right back; she's gone to get your sippy cup in the car." Jude nodded and continued to try and grab everything he possibly could. At some point, he got bored of sitting on his chair and decided to get off it.

"Pweasee," He looked at his father. Lucas pulled back the chair and lifted Jude off. He stood there for a few minutes before looking at his dad.

Lucas knew what Jude had in mind and he warned him, "No. You stay here."

Jude shook his head and pointed outside, "Mama."

Lucas grabbed the little boy's hand and laughed, "She'll be right back. You just have to stay here."

Jude nodded and crouched down, babbling away. Lucas smiled and took a sip of his water. When he looked back at Jude he saw him walk away towards the door. He shook his head and went after him.

"Jude," He called out.

The little boy ran straight into a woman's legs and fell down. For a minute he thought about crying but when he looked up he stared at the woman he'd run into and smiled. Lucas caught up to his son and went to say sorry to the woman when he saw who it was, "Peyton." He said awkwardly.

"Lucas." She said quickly, her eyes set on his.

"What are you doing here?"

"I moved back." She smiled, "I've missed you so much."

Lucas took a quick look down and noticed that Jude was fine and still just looking up at Peyton.

"How long have you been back?"

"A few weeks." She said as she reached out her hand to run along his arm. "I've been waiting to run into you."

"Dada" Jude smiled from the floor and when Lucas looked down he noticed his son had untied his shoes.

"Jude" He sighed slightly before smiling. "Come here buddy."

Peyton stared at the little boy in disbelief, she didn't believe that Lucas had a son...he moved on without her.

"Yeah, uh we were out of town." Lucas said moving Jude to rest on his hip.

"He's beautiful..he looks just like..." Peyton nearly whispered.

"He does." Lucas smiled slightly looking at his son who looked identical to the woman walking in the door.

"Jude look what Mama got for you..." Brooke led off as she walked in stopping when she saw who Lucas was talking to. "Peyton." She whispered.

Peyton turned around to face Brooke Davis. She was hurt, he had moved on. It hurt her that he had moved on, but it hurt her even more that he had moved on with Brooke.

"Hi...uh how are you?" Brooke asked slowly approaching her husband.

Jude wiggled from his father's grip and reached out for his mother.

"Hey baby." Brooke smiled taking Jude as he curled into her chest.

"I'm okay...How are you?"

"Never been better." Brooke smiled.

"That's good." Peyton muttered.

"Peyton's been in town for a few weeks." Lucas supplied for Brooke.

"Oh did you come back with Nathan?"

"Yeah."

"That's after before we left. A business trip for C over B, and Lucas actually had some meetings over getting another book published." Brooke smiled, biting her lip.

"Wow what's it about?" Peyton asked.

"Oh well," Brooke started rabbling about how the book was a story about family, based mostly on her and Jude.

"That sounds like its going to be amazing." Peyton smiled and they all stood there for a moment before Peyton announced that she had to go.

"Oh okay" Lucas said quickly, neither of them asking why she was leaving without food.

"Well it was great to see you." Brooke smiled as Peyton walked out the door. When she was far gone Brooke turned to her husband "What the hell?"

"I have no clue." Lucas shrugged.

"Hell." Jude muttered before Brooke and Lucas looked up at one another, sharing a look.

_Who do you think you are?_

Brooke walked back in the living room after putting Jude down for a nap. She noticed Haley on the couch, scribbling in an old looking book. For a minute, she thought about leaving her friend to her thoughts for the night, but decided it was better not to. Especially considering what Haley had gone through on her own before. Also because Brooke Davis liked to know people's business and she wanted to know what Haley was doing.

"Hey." She sat down next to her and Haley closed the book as her friend sat down. "What are you doing?"

Haley looked up and shrugged, "Nothing just thinking."

"A penny for your thoughts?"

"I'm not sure their worth that much." Haley sighed, "It's just that lately I've been feeling happier and inspired. I don't know where it came from but I'm not complaining. It kind of just happened and I guess it's because for once I'm happy and everything seems to be going right and..."

"Woah, Haley slow down you lost me. It's good that you're happy, it's amazing to finally see you smile but what are you going on about?" Brooke smiled.

Haley looked down at the book and flipped a few pages before looking back up at Brooke, "I want to get back in my music."

Brooke sat there, shocked for a moment before she exclaimed, "Haley that's amazing!"

"For a couple of weeks, I've been writing down lyrics whenever I felt inspired and it feels amazing. I want to do it again, sing. I want my music to be alive once again."

Brooke couldn't be happier for her friend. She was finally getting her life on the right track. "I'm really happy for you Haley. And if you're ready to go back into music, then go ahead."

"I am." Haley smiled "And I think I'm gonna call Chris up tomorrow and ask if his label would still want to meet with me."

"Of course he will."

"Brooke it's been years since they asked me to sign with them."

"So what, everyone wants to hear the amazing Haley once again."

"Thanks" Haley smiled and Brooke tackled her best friend in a hug. "I've missed having you here."

"I've missed being here. It feels good to be home." Brooke smiled.

_Who do you think you are?_


	6. Apologize

It had been a few weeks since Nathan and Haley's heated argument at the rivercourt. It hadn't changed much of their agreement with Jamie. Nathan hung out with his son twice a week and Haley spent most of that time avoiding Nathan. When Haley was with them she brought work to do so he wouldn't interrupt her. Nathan was now allowed to have Jamie on his own once a week as long as Peyton was with him. Even if Haley didn't like her she figured Peyton would be responsible. She spoke to him only when she needed to. She didn't want to let him get to her, she was still furious with him after their argument. Most of the time, when they spoke it was Jamie related and essential stuff. No one mentioned the fight, as if it had never happened.

Nathan sighed and took a seat at the docks. It was this table where their relationship started, now ten years later they couldn't be further apart.

"Nathan." Haley called walked towards the table.

"Hey Haley, where's Jamie?"

"I'm so sorry. My parents came into town this morning and I just...they wanted to spend some time with him before they leave tomorrow." She said taking a seat and running and hand through her hair. He could tell that she was very stressed out.

"Did you know they were coming?"

"No, does it look like I knew?" She said as he laughed. "That stupid RV."

"Your parents are a special bunch."

"If that's what you choose to call them."

"Well since we have the time...maybe we should talk."

"Nathan."

"Haley please. I'm trying here." He begged as Haley saw the sincerity in his eyes.

"Fine. What do you want?"

"I want this to work Haley. I don't want this to be awkward. I want us to at least be friends. Let's talk now, get everything we want to say off our mind and start fresh."

She looked at him for a moment and figured it could work. They could talk through their problems once and for all and move on as civil adults.

"I'm sorry for hurting you Haley. For everything that I've done. If I could take it all back, but I can't. And I know you'll always hate me for that but I can't change it and I'm sorry."

"Nathan you can't just waltz back in here and make everything okay, you left me, you walked out on our son for what, basketball, was it worth it?"

"I know a sorry won't fix it. No, it wasn't worth it Haley. Every time I had a game I would look at the bleachers and hope to see you there with Jamie on your lap, cheering me on. But when I'd look and I couldn't find you I felt guilty and I missed you guys. I wanted to go home, I wanted you guys to be there with me."

"Then why didn't you? Why didn't you come back if you missed us that much?"

"I couldn't come home, I have a 5 years contract with them. Cancelling it could have ruined everything." He told her.

She scoffed, "You've been hiding behind that excuse for years now and I don't buy it. If Jamie and I meant that much to you, you would have transferred or ended the contract. You were extremely good, every team wanted you."

He was lost for words. He'd never thought about it, maybe he was hiding in that excuse. But for what, he didn't know.

"I'm sorry." Was all he managed to say.

"Yeah, well sorry won't fix it." They sat there looking at each other for a moment.

"What about Clay's son? You were spotted playing with him quite a few times. I always hid those ones from Jamie. He didn't need to see his father who abandoned him, playing with another kid."

"I didn't think it actually mattered." He admitted.

"Nathan, have you not read the tabloids? How some of them said you and Peyton were dating and that Logan might have been your son. How heartbroken Jamie would have been to know he'd been replaced. That you cared more for them than for him. He doesn't show it, but he's hurt Nathan. You made him feel like he wasn't good enough. He thinks you left because of him."

"I was scared okay." Nathan said loudly. "Of everything. I didn't come home because I was scared that I had lost everything. And I did, I lost everything that ever mattered to me, my wife and my son."

"You say that now but you were the one who walked out. I'm not gonna excuse you for leaving me Nathan and the fact that you didn't come back before you were scared? You weren't too scared to leave in the first place. Grow some balls and own up to what you did." Haley said spitefully before leaving the table.

A few minutes later Haley slowly made her way back to the table. "My parents just called they will be bringing Jamie back to my house soon...Do you want a ride?"

"Actually Peyton is waiting for me, I need to pick her up...could I pick her up then meet you at your place?"

"Fine." She muttered.

"Listen Haley..." Nathan started.

"No" She said quickly putting her hand out to stop him. "Jamie is still your son...And I'm still your wife but that doesn't mean anything. I never filed for divorce because I couldn't afford it. You have a chance with Jamie but never again with me." She said before walking off once more.

* * *

><p>"Haley Baley" Brooke shouted walking into her house with Jude on her hip, Lucas and Rachel behind her. "We're home, did you miss us?"<p>

Brooke walked through the house to see Haley leaning on her piano and Nathan and Peyton sitting on the couch. No one speaking. "Well isn't this cozy." She muttered.

"Nathan and Peyton are waiting for my parents to drop off Jamie."

"We were going to take him bowling." Peyton said quietly as Brooke put Jude down to play with his toys.

"That's good." Rachel said sitting down trying to lighten the mood. "He's a really good bowler."

It killed Nathan that Rachel knew that and not him. It was his child and for so many years Rachel was the enemy. "Oh and Hales asshat called me in the car cause you're weren't picking up your phone. He is stopping over to pick up his guitar, he left it here yesterday."

Haley reached in her back pocket and saw three missed calls from the same number. "Don't call him asshat. And yeah, it's over in the corner I was going to bring it to the studio tonight."

"But he's an asshole." Brooke sighed taking a seat on the piano next to her friend.

"He is but Chris's good at what he does. I love him anyway." After the conversation Haley and Brooke had Haley got in contact with Chris and his label was more than happy to sign her.

"Keller?" Nathan questioned quietly as Lucas nodded.

"Hales." Brooke groaned.

"Sure you're complaining about him now but you weren't when he got us a chance to meet Jason Myraz, your favorite singer since high school."

"You act like he's a god." Lucas groaned.

"He's a good guy, Luke. You just don't see that part of him. He's always been there for me, you know that." Haley said, she was getting a little tired of trying to get others to see the best in people.

"Whatever." He said with an eye roll.

"No, seriously you don't understand how much he's helped me, it's great to have another musician around that I can vent to...and to teach me things."

"Like what?" Peyton questioned.

"How to play the electric guitar vs a regular acoustic. And the violin." Haley explained

"The tool plays the violin?" Nathan questioned.

"Yeah, his parents made him take violin and piano lessons when he was seven. He loved it. Shame on him for liking it a building a career from it."

"Wait, when was he here yesterday?" Brooke questioned, she had been home all day.

"When you put Jude down for a nap, he wanted to play me his new song real quick. This song Brooke...any girl would be lucky if a guy wrote a song like them for that."

"Are you sleeping with him?" Nathan asked quickly tilting his head.

"Yes Nathan, I'm a dirty hoe who sleeps with anything that walks...Oh wait, that's you. You don't deserve to know who I have and haven't slept with. How many girls did you sleep with in New York?" Nathan shyly looked away as Haley heard a knock at the door.

"Come in." She shouted as Chris walked down the hall and into the room.

"Hey Hales." He smiled giving her a side hug.

"Hi. I found it this morning. Don't worry I took care of it and dug my initials into the corner."

"Ha ha." He laughed "You think you're so funny."

"I am." She smiled lifting up her chin.

"Did you do your vocal exercises?"

"Nah I'll do them when Jamie goes to sleep tonight."

"Where is the little terror?"

"With my parents."

"Jimmy and Lydia are in town, why didn't you tell me?"

"Cause I didn't know."

"They did that again." He said with a laugh.

"Again? Try five times in one year. From now on just wake up every morning thinking your parents are coming and invite me over because they love me.:

"Please" She smiled laughing.

"What song have you been warming up to Hales?" Brooke asked knowing it was always a cover.

"We found love. It's a little out of her current vocal range so we've been using it so she can strive for the high notes." Chris explained.

"Sing it"

_Yellow diamonds in the light_

_And we're standing side by side_

_As your shadow crosses mine_

_What it takes to come alive_

_It's the way I'm feeling I just can't deny_

_But I've gotta let it go_

_We found love in a hopeless place_

_We found love in a hopeless place_

_We found love in a hopeless place_

_We found love in a hopeless place_

Chris joined Haley while she sang, he would always sing an octave higher and tried to encourage her to match his pitch.

Nathan kept glaring at Chris the entire time he sang, which Haley certainly picked up on. him down the entire time.

"Are you recording again?" Peyton asked.

"Yeah I'm working on an album. It's actually almost done already." Haley smiled excitedly. "Oh by the way I wrote my single yesterday."

"How do you know it's the single?" Brooke asked.

"Ask anyone you just get this feeling when you're writing it." Chris nodded in agreement with Haley.

"What's it called?" Lucas asked

"Without you."

"Is it the melody you were working on on Friday?" Rachel asked, she remembered being annoyed that Haley wouldn't stop humming the same thing all day, but she was happy that her friend was singing once more.

"Mhmm."

"That was awesome. Let me hear."

"No, it's not ready. I want to mess around with the beat a little first before anyone hears it."

"C'mon play something Hales." Rachel begged, loving to hear her best friend sing which until recently was rare.

"I will be playing something, Saturday night remember? Tric?" Haley questioned.

"What?" Peyton asked.

"Hales is performing for the first time in forever." Lucas said excitedly. "Finally."

"Sorry I was busy with your nephew."

"Did you decide if he could come or not, he really wants to?" Brooke asked, knowing it was a hard choice for Haley to make.

"No he can't it'll be too much for him to hear it. He would understand it. I don't want him to hear it. I called up Karen and she told me that she wouldn't watch him."

"What?" Lucas asked in shock.

"But she said that he could stay with Lily and her babysitter, Clara. Because her and Keith want to be there." She smiled.

"Aww Mama Karen." Brooke smiled.

"She likes Haley more than Luke most days." Rachel laughed as she picked Jude up off of his father's lap and running a hand through the boys hair.

"Hey!" He tried to defend, knowing it was true.

"Sing for us anyway." Chris sighed running his hands along the keys playing the beginning to one of her songs.

"Fine but I wont sing New York." She said motioning to the melody he was currently playing, of another song of hers. "It needs a full band for the full effect as does my single. By the way will you be part of the band on Saturday?"

"You didn't even have to ask." He smiled.

"Good...How about I play Apologize?" She asked kinking her head.

"Oh I like this one!" Brooke said excitedly.

"Yeah you like it so much that you sob every time she sings it." Rachel joked.

"Whatever, get going Hales." Brooke said quickly.

Haley took a seat at the piano and slowly started playing the keys.

_I'm holdin' on your rope,_

_Got me ten feet off the ground._

_And I'm hearin' what you say,_

_But I just can't make a sound._

_You tell me that you need me,_

_Then you go and cut me down..._

_But wait..._

_You tell me that you're sorry,_

_Didn't think I'd turn around_

_And say..._

Chris slowly started to tap his hands on the piano to the rhythm, he had heard this song when Haley recorded last week. He started to sing backup for her causing her to smile slightly.

_That it's too late to apologize._

_It's too late..._

_I said it's too late to apologize._

_It's too late, too late, oh, oh._

_I'd take another chance,_

_Take a fall, take a shot for you, oh, oh._

_I need you like a heart needs a beat,_

_But it's nothin' new, yeah!_

_I loved you with a fire red,_

_Now it's turnin' blue_

_And you say..._

_Sorry, like an angel_

_Heaven let me think was you_

_But I'm afraid..._

_It's too late to apologize._

_It's too late._

_I said it's too late to apologize._

_It's too late, whoa!_

_It's too late to apologize._

_It's too late._

_I said it's too late to apologize._

_It's too late._

_I said it's too late to apologize, yeah (too late)!_

_I said it's too late to apologize, yeah (too late)!_

_I'm holdin' on your rope,_

_Got me ten feet off the ground._

As Haley finished singing everyone remained quiet as they reflected on the beauty of her voice and the emotion that it held. "Wow Hales." Rachel said. And right as she did they heard clapping from the doorway, Haley turned around to see her parents standing there.

"That was amazing baby girl."

"Thanks" She smiled. She wasn't nearly as surprised to see them as she was when they walked in on breakfast with Brooke, Lucas and Rachel this morning. "Where is my son?"

"He wanted to show us some new toy he had that was in the backyard, so he ran to get it." Jimmy explained.

"Hello Peyton, Nathan." Lydia said timidly looking over at them.

"Hello." Peyton nearly whispered back.

"Hi Lydia, Jimmy." Nathan said standing up and putting his hands in his pockets.

"Mr. and Mrs. James" Jimmy corrected firmly as Nathan only nodded. Brooke and Rachel shared a look and tried to avoid laughing.

"And hello Chris." Lydia said finally seeing him behind the piano.

"Hey Chris, how are you doing? How's the album?" Jimmy asked shaking his hand.

"It's doing great Jimmy thanks for asking." Chris said, "And Lydia you're looking more beautiful than ever." He said giving her a hug.

Nathan's hands moved to fists at his side. Really? They welcome this prick like another son, but he is an outsider! For god's sake he was their grandson's father.

"Oh Jude, don't touch that!" Lucas said quickly reaching for his son who was headed for the guitar laying on the floor. As he lifted Jude up he laid a kiss to his head.

"Here, let him sit with me baby, I'll watch him." Brooke said opening her arms for him. Peyton went stiff as Lucas handed Brooke the child, that should be her. She should be the one calling him baby, but Lucas was too stubborn to see that.

"See look how cool..." Jamie said running through the house to show his grandparents his new toy. "Chris, what are you doing here?"

"Oh I just stopped in real quick."

His own son didn't even notice him, Nathan thought as his heart dropped. He cleared his throat to gather everyone's attention with the new goal to get out of there as soon as possible. "We should get going Jaime."

"Hey dad, Peyton." Jamie said moving towards his father.

"Hey bud, let's go." Nathan said leading him to the door.

"Bye" Jamie said quickly to everyone before the three were gone.


	7. New York

Haley pushed the cart down the aisle of the supermarket, she moved from the one end to where Jamie stood in the middle. "Did you find a cereal you wanted yet Jamie?"

"I can't decided between these three." He said pointing to the boxes in his hands.

"Alright you pick what cereal you want and I'll be on the end cap looking at the jelly. Don't go anywhere else okay?"

"Alright Momma." He smiled before studiously thinking about his choice.

After Haley grabbed what she needed she turned back down the aisle. Without looking up from her list of what she needed she asked "Jamie did you decide yet?" After not hearing a response she looked up. "Jamie? Jamie where are you?" She left the cart where it was and ran down to the other end of the aisle looking around. "James Scott, Jamie where are you?"

Seeing a sales worker she walked quickly over to him "Excuses me, my son is missing."

"What?"

"He is eight years old, his name is James Lucas Scott, he has sandy blonde hair and blue eyes."

The sales worker quickly pulled out his radio "Code Adam, Code Adam." He announced into it as Haley then heard a bunch of people talking back through to it. "Where did you last see him?"

"In aisle seven."

"Okay, they have locked the doors, no one gets in or out, we will find him okay?" He said trying to calm down a hyperventilating Haley. "Alright come with me to the front desk okay?" He said placing a hand on her back and leading her through the store only for Haley to stop quickly and let out a frazzled gasp before running.

"Oh baby" She cried quickly pulling Jamie in her arms for a tight hug, not realising who he was standing with.

"Jamie I told you to stay in the aisle, why didn't you?"

"I was with dad."

"What?" She asked noticing the man next to her was Nathan. "Why did you take him?"

"He was alone in the aisle."

"I was right around the corner waiting for him, why wouldn't you ask him where I was?" She asked raising her voice.

"I just...I don't know...I didn't think about it." Nathan said running a hand through his hair.

"You never do." She mumbled "Jamie never do that again, you have to tell me. Don't just go off with people even if it is Nathan."

"Alright momma, I'm sorry."

"It's okay." She sighed hugging him once more, glaring at Nathan while mouthing "Don't ever do that again."

"Ma'am here is your purse." Haley chuckled lightly as Todd, the sales worker pushed her cart over and handed her her purse.

"Thank you for all your help."

"Hales, what are you doing here?" Brooke asked walking over.

"It was my week to shop wasn't it?"

"No...or maybe it is." She laughed "Anyway you'll never guess what just happened, I got locked outside because they locked the doors because some kid was missing."

"I know it was Jamie."

"What?" Brooke shouted.

"C'mon let's just go, I'll explain in the car." Haley said walking away and sending Nathan one final glare.

* * *

><p>Nathan tapped his foot against the "Welcome" mat as he waited for the door to Brooke and Lucas's house to open. When it did he noticed the look of shock on Haley's face when she saw it was him. She quickly went from happy to guarded as she crossed her hands across her chest. "What do you want?"<p>

"Haley, I just wanted to apologize."

Haley scoffed and laughed "For what? I don't have all day."

"I was wrong for what happened at the food store. I'm sorry for scaring you. I know I shouldn't have done it but I'm still getting used to it...this. I am so sorry and just please don't be mad at me for this. I'm still learning and I want to do what's right by him and you. I just...I'm sorry."

Haley nodded slowly as Nathan backed away and got into his car.

It took him a lot of effort to come to her door and apologize, specifically when he wasn't going to see Jamie Haley recognized and appreciated that. She smiled slightly as she shut the door and walked inside. He was learning.

* * *

><p>Lucas sat on his stool at Tric waiting for Haley to come up on stage. Brooke was in the back, helping Haley before her performance.<p>

"Sorry Broody but Haley needs me" She'd told him, after he'd complained of being alone.

"Just make some friends," She'd joked.

Now, he sat alone at the bar waiting. He had considered having a drink but decided against it.

He didn't notice Peyton sitting on the stool next to him until she stumbled into him. "Sorry." She laughed.

He looked over and shrugged, "It's fine."

They both sat there until Peyton asked, "Care to buy me a drink?

He looked over to her and he noticed how drunk she already was. She had a half full glass in her hands and she was asking for more. "I think you've had enough for one night." He said taking away her glass and putting it away from her.

"See, you still care about me."

"You'll thank me in the morning." He said.

"Only if I wake up next to you. Did you miss me while I was away Broooodddy" She said making fun of his old nickname Brooke had given him.

"At first," He said. "But then I figured it was for the best."

"I missed you a lot. I wish I never left and we fixed things. I still love you and regret all this time we spent apart." She continued, "I regret it you know," She started. "I wish we were still together. We were good for each other, we were in love. It was good, I was happy. I don't know why it had to end."

Lucas turned to face her, "It had to end because it wasn't working anymore. There was no you and me anymore. The passion was gone, we didn't have the same plans."

"We weren't good together Peyton. Brooke and I are good together."

"But Lucas." She looked at him and leaned closer. "I still love you."

"I don't Peyton."

"Look me in the eye and admit that. Look me in the eye Lucas cause we both know it isn't true." Peyton said as ran her hand along his cheek and moved to kiss him.

Lucas quickly got up from his seat and moved away. "I'm married Peyton." He said raising his hand to show her his ring "I don't love you, I love Brooke and my son."

With that Lucas walked away, shortly after he met up with Brooke and watched as Haley walked on the stage. He would mention it after but now he wanted Brooke to enjoy Haley's performance

"Hey everybody." Haley greeted walking on stage. "How are you all doing tonight?" She asked as the crowd screamed. "Great. So this song is going to be on my new album, out soon. And I hope you all like it, it's called New York."

Haley looked out at the large crowd as her fingers ran over the keys. She noticed several familiar faces, all seated at the bar, and all but one were smiling. That one was the one the song was about. She took a deep breath and began to play, the band followed her lead and did the same.

_If you were here beside me instead of in New York_  
><em>If the curve of you was curved on me<em>  
><em>I'd tell you that I loved you before I ever knew you<em>  
><em>'Cause I loved the simple thought of you<em>  
><em>If our hearts are never broken and there's no joy in the mending<em>  
><em>There's so much this hurt can teach us both<em>  
><em>There's distance and there's silence, your words have never left me<em>  
><em>They're the prayer that I say every day<em>

_Come on, come out, come here, come here_  
><em>Come on, come out, come here, come here<em>  
><em>Come on, come out, come here, come here<em>  
><em>Come on, come out, come here, come here<em>  
><em>The lone neon nights and the ache of the ocean<em>  
><em>And the fire that was starting to spark<em>  
><em>I miss it all, from the love to the lightning<em>  
><em>And the lack of it snaps me in two<em>

_If you were here beside me instead of in New York_  
><em>In the arms you said you'd never leave<em>  
><em>I'd tell you that it's simple and it was only ever thus<em>  
><em>There is nowhere else that I belong<em>

_Come on, come out, come here, come here_  
><em>Come on, come out, come here, come here<em>  
><em>Come on, come out, come here, come here<em>  
><em>Come on, come out, come here, come here<em>  
><em>The lone neon nights and the ache of the ocean<em>  
><em>And the fire that was starting to spark<em>  
><em>I miss it all from the love to the lightning<em>  
><em>And the lack of it snaps me in two<em>

_Just give me a sign, there's an end and not beginning_  
><em>To the quiet chaos driving me mad<em>  
><em>The lone neon nights and the walls of the ocean<em>  
><em>And the fire that is starting to go out<em>

She got off of the stage proud of herself. She'd done it. She had made it through the show. Oh how she'd missed the feeling of holding a mic and the stage below her feet. She was proud of herself.

She walked to the backstage and Brooke tackled her into a hug. "You did it tutor girl!"

"You were great." Lucas smiled and kissed the top of her head.

"Thanks." Haley said taking a deep breath running her hand through her hair

"Not that I want to ruin the joyful mood," Lucas said. "But I think Peyton's lost it."

"Why?" Brooke sighed rolling her eyes.

"She tried to kiss me She was telling me how much she missed me and still loved me and how I was the right one for her."

"She did what?!" Brooke flipped.

"I promise I left as soon as that happened, she was drunk and I...I would never do that." He stuttered quickly.

"I believe you Lucas." Brooke said quickly putting a hand on his chest.

Haley walked away a bit, feeling like they needed their moment.

Peyton was still sitting at the bar, playing with yet another drink when Brooke walked up to her and asked, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Peyton looked up and put her glass down, "Well, well isn't that Brooke Davis."

"What the hell do you think you're doing with my husband?"

"You know he still loves me." She said.

"Like hell he does, he's my husband and he loves me and our son. He doesn't love you Peyton, you have to get over it."

"You know it, he knows it, I know it. Lucas and I are meant to be together. It hurts that we broke up but I'm back and I want to fix things. I want to be with him, we were good together." She rambled on talking more to herself than to Brooke.

"Back off Peyton, he's mine." Brooke threatened.

"I love him and you knew that when you went out with him. You stole him from me."

"Stay away from my family." Brooke said before turning around and walking away.

* * *

><p>At some point during the night, Haley walked saw Nathan talking with Peyton. She wanted to fight the urge to walk over there and tell Peyton what she wanted to say, but she couldn't. She walked over to where Nathan was standing with Peyton. She noticed that he was trying to get some sense into her.<p>

"You leave him alone." She said when she walked up to them. Peyton looked at her confused for a moment. "You left, Peyton. You broke his heart."

Peyton sigh and Nathan let go of her arm. "I didn't mean to, I still love him."

"It doesn't matter, he's with Brooke now and they have a family. There's a child involved. End of story."

Haley didn't leave any time for Peyton to reply, she turned her attention to Nathan and asked, "Can we talk?"

"Sure" He nodded as Haley led them into the back room and shut the door behind her. "What's up?"

"Tonight made me realize something." She led off and paused. "You get to pick Nathan. You either get me back or Jamie. You can only fix one relationship and it's up to you."

Nathan looked very confused as he stuttered "I...Jamie."

Haley smiled. "Good you've learned." She quickly hugged him. "And if you would have picked me over him I think I would have slapped you. Anyway. I've been thinking about how comfortable Jamie is with you now and how you've stepped up to the plate recently to be his father. So I don't think I need to meet with you and Jamie anymore. And neither does Peyton."

"Really?" He asked happily. He was on the right track to get his family back.

"So why don't you take him twice a week, one day after school, and one weekend day. That way you can spend some time with him alone. Just be safe."

"Of course I will Haley." He insisted. "I know how hard this must be for you to let me have him on my own but I will always protect him."

"It's actually easier than I expected." Haley laughed slightly. "I never thought I would say this but I trust you with him Nathan. Now this will keep going as long as it needs unless we need to change it for some reason. Just don't take me to court or else I will lose him Nathan. I don't have the money for a lawyer and with everything that happened before..." She lead off looking at the ground.

"I won't Haley" he said lifting her chin with his finger "I promise."

"And there's something else… I'm never going to forgive you for walking away Nathan. I don't think I can ever get past it. And you will never realize how I felt and why I didn't want you to go. It's just not gonna happen. But I want to stop fighting, I want to stop feeling angry and upset every time I think of you so let's just stop. Let's stop bringing it up and let's stop talking about it because we will never agree. I don't want Jamie to witness it either. So let's just focus on him. We only talk about him and we don't keep having these meet ups to talk because nothing good comes from it."

Nathan sighed. "Hales...I'm always going to love you and I will do this for you because you think it's best. But I don't. I understand how you felt. I do now. I now know that I would do anything for Jamie and I was stupid before. I was in the wrong and even though you were being stubborn and we could have made it work in New York, I was still wrong for leaving. But when you say you will never get past it and you can't be with me. That's where you're wrong, and I'm going to prove it to you. We're still married for a reason Hales, you and I both know it. We didn't divorce for a reason, not because you couldn't afford it, but because we are meant to be together. And I'm just gonna have to show you." He said looking into her eyes. She was so conflicted and he knew it but he wasn't giving up without a fight. Slowly he leaned in and kissed her. It was short, and gentle, as he held her chin delicately but it left Haley even more unsure. "I love you Hales and I don't care what I have to do but one day...one day you'll cave." And with that he left the room leaving Haley confused, lonelier than ever, and...wanting more.


	8. Without You

Nathan counted in his head "57...58...59..60. It's been a minute of waiting, I'm going in." He thought at he walked in the door to Haley's house. He had waited outside for a full minute before making this decision "Haley are you in here, I brought the..." He shouted before quitting at the sound of the piano. He followed that tune until he was in the back hall, peeking around the edge he saw Haley at the piano throwing herself into the song. He listened for a while before he thought that he should give Haley her privacy. He could already tell what the song was about, and frankly didn't want to hear anymore. He placed Jamie's backpack on the front porch and sent Haley a text saying he left it there.

_I miss those blue eyes_

_How you kiss me at night_

_I miss the way we sleep_

_Like there's no sunrise_

_Like the taste of your smile_

_I miss the way we breathe_

_But I never told you_

_What I should have said_

_No, I never told you_

_I just held it in_

_And now I miss everything about you_

_I can't believe it, I still want you_

_After all the things we've been through_

_I miss everything about you_

_Without you, whoa..._

_I see your blue eyes_

_Every time I close mine_

_You make it hard to see_

_Where I belong to_

_When I'm not around you_

_It's like I'm not with me_

* * *

><p>Nathan parked his car in the driveway to Haley's house and Jamie jumped out. He grabbed his bag along the way and ran toward the door. "Wait up kiddo," Nathan shouted after him. He closed the car door but by the time he reached the front door, Jamie was long gone.<p>

Haley frowned at the door. "Why is he such in a hurry?"

Nathan shrugged, "I got him a new game and he wants to try it out as soon as possible."

"Oh alright." She smiled. They both stood there for a moment before she politely asked him if he wanted to come in.

"Sure." They walked in the house and they mostly talked about Jamie.

"Yeah, he's got a spelling bee coming up and he's been practicing."

Nathan nodded, "I've heard all about it."

They talked a little more and at some point Haley informed him of her new single. "Remember that single I was writing?" Nathan nodded and she continued, "Well it's coming out today and I'm sort of nervous."

He put a hand on her shoulder and said "Don't be. I'm sure it's amazing."

"Thanks." She smiled.

* * *

><p>Later that night, when Nathan was home alone he logged into his computer and he searched for her song. He waited until midnight and got it as soon as it came out. It only seemed right, even if they were on somewhat reasonable terms, it felt like the right thing to do. He searched for her single and found it within minutes and pressed buy. He waited until it downloaded before playing it. He listened to it a first time just listening to her voice. The second time, he tried to understand the lyrics and by the third time he was crying. He thought back to all those amazing moments they used to have, when everything was so much easier.<p>

He tried to think how he could have messed things up so bad. Sure, things were better now than they were a couple weeks back but it still wasn't the same. If he hadn't had left all those years ago, they would be fine and Jamie would have both his parents. He had screwed up and he knew it.

_I did what I did for you I did what I could_

_I did what I don't know how_

_You did what you did for you you did what you would_

_I don't know I don't know now_

_My life will grow my love will go_

_My life will go, my love will grow_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Everything moves save for me everything will move_

_I just don't know how to know_

_But somebody will make me fall somebody will try_

_Then I will just go and go_

_My life will grow my love will go_

_My life will go, my love will grow_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Go, go, go, just go go go_

_Go, go, go, just go go go_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

_Without you_

* * *

><p>The following night Haley stepped out of the studio onto the eerie street. She was recording late, so late that Chris had left over two hours ago. Jamie was sleeping over a friend's house tonight so she figured why not stay longer. But something didn't feel right. She felt like she was being watched. It was extremely dark and she didn't want to walk any further so she quickly walked back into the studio and shut the door behind her. Dialing Luke's number she waited and waited for him to pick up, but he didn't, it didn't even go to voicemail. Chris's phone was broken and she didn't want any of her girl friends to come and put them in danger. It only left Nathan.<p>

"Hello" He said groggily.

"Hey Nate, it's Haley."

"Is something wrong?" He asked quickly.

"I'm at the studio, and I went to leave but...this is going to sound so strange but...I felt like I was being watched. And I don't want to..."

"I'll be right there." He said quickly cutting her off.

"Nate."

"Just stay where you are okay, stay inside with the lights on."

"I will." She said hanging up smiling slightly.

Ten minutes later her phone rang again. "Hey Hales, I'm coming inside. I didn't want to scare you when I walked in so I figured I would call to let you know."

"Thanks Nate." She said, hitting the end button as he opened the door.

"Hey." He smiled slightly, in his plaid pajama pants and white t-shirt.

"I'm sorry I woke you."

"Don't" He said stopping her her. "I'm glad you did."

"I just had this feeling and I just...didn't want it to be right."

"A woman's intuition." He finished off her thought for her. "Listen, I'm parked right out front and your car is pretty far, so why don't I just drive you home and I can pickup your car tomorrow."

Haley nodded, completely agreeing. He put an arm around her shoulders and led her out of the studio. When he got to the car, he stood by her side as she got in then jogged over to the drivers seat. Once he shut his doors he hit the lock button before smiling over at her and starting to drive.

"Shit." Haley then muttered. "My house key is in the glove compartment… I don't want to wake them up by knocking at the door either. It's too late and Jude's sleeping."

Nathan bit his lip "You can stay at my place if you want?"

"Yeah, that's probably best." She said nervously. "Where are you living anyway?"

"Right off of Freemont."

"A house?" She asked surprised.

"Yeah" He shrugged. "I figured why not?"

"Wow this place is huge." Haley said as Nathan pulled in the driveway he only laughed. He had to admit, it was. Before Haley could even get out of the car Nathan was at her door, opening it, just like old times. "Thanks"

He led her inside and locked the door behind him. "You can borrow some of my clothes to sleep in." Nathan said leading them into his room as Haley looked around and she realized how odd this situation truly was, she was in her estranged husband's bedroom borrowing his clothes. Five years ago this would have been her house as well, and she wouldn't have to borrow his clothes, she would just take them. Looking around she noticed three pictures. One was a photo of him and Jamie recently, one was the three of them on the day Jamie was born, and the other was the two of them on their wedding day.

"There's a bathroom down the hall." He said handing her a t-shirt and a pair of his boxers, figuring she could roll them better to fit.

"Thanks" She smiled taking them and going to change, when leaving the bathroom she walked by a room with an open door. Haley looked around for Nathan, seeing he wasn't around she peaked in. The walls were painted a light blue and little basketballs were painted all around. There was a bed, a desk, a dresser, a tv, an xbox and some toys. He had made a whole room for Jamie and Haley could tell by just looking at it that Jamie would love it.

"It was the first room I decorated… with Peyton's help." Nathan said standing behind her.

"He must love it." She smiled turning to face him.

"Yeah." Nathan nodded noticing Haley yawn. "C'mon, I'll show you the guest room."

* * *

><p>Haley woke up in a bed that wasn't hers, confused at first but then she remembers that she had stayed at Nathan's place. She pulled herself out of bed and walked down the hall to the living room. She noticed Nathan lying comfortably on the couch watching the news.<p>

He didn't hear her walk in and she told him good morning. It surprised him and he said, "Oh you scared me. But good morning to you too."

He pointed to the tv with the remote and said, "Your intuition was right yesterday."

She frowned and took a seat on the other couch. "A lady was attacked on that street last night." He explained.

"Oh my."

"Thank god it wasn't you." He said.

She nodded, "yeah."

"Hey are you okay?" He asked, noticing how she fell quiet.

"It's just scary...that could have been me." She whispered.

He moved over to be nearer to her. He placed his hand on hers as a form of measurement. "Don't think like that. You are safe now."

Haley stood up slowly "Alright, I'm going to get changed, then could you give me a ride back to the studio so I could get my car?"

"Sure" Nathan said biting his lip, obviously noticing how quickly Haley moved away.

* * *

><p>Nathan stood in his regular spot in the street and waited for Jamie to finish school. He always made sure to be there early. The bell rang and minutes later, children of different ages came out of the school, some running some walking. Jamie was with his friends, Madison, Chuck and Andre and he waved goodbye to them when he saw his dad.<p>

"Hey there bud, how was school?" He asked, taking his son's school bag.

"It was fine, Miss Lauren was talking to us about this talent show we would have and I was wondering what I should do."

"I'm sure you'll find something." Jamie smiled and Nathan open the car door.

"Hop on."

"Do you have any ideas for me?" Jamie asked.

"I was never good with that stuff. As your Mom though, she will know." Nathan said taking his seat in the car.

"Alright." He paused. "So what are we doing?"

"I don't know, I was thinking maybe pizza and some video games?" Nathan suggested.

"Awesome, mama never lets me have pizza unless it's a special occasion." Jamie smiled.

"Well then it'll be our little secret."

"But I can't keep secrets from mama." Nathan thought about that for a moment.

"That's a good thing, don't keep secrets but how about we only tell her after we've already had it?"

Jamie seemed to agree with that, "Sure."

"Alright, let's go." Nathan drove off towards his house and they both spent the night playing some NBA Live, rock band, eating pizza and being boys. Jamie liked their night together, he liked to have another guy around. Not that his uncle Lucas wasn't fun but he was always busy with Jude or his new book and couldn't do these kinds of things with him. In the end, Jamie was glad to have his dad back.

* * *

><p>Nathan and Jamie were in the living room playing NBA Live on the playstation when the phone rang. Nathan paused the game and picked up his phone, "Hello."<p>

He frowned as he heard Clay on the other line mumbling things he couldn't understand. "Wait, back up you're going where?"

Jamie leaned back on the couch and watched his dad with a concerned look on his face, "Dad is everything okay?"

Nathan didn't want to worry Jamie. Sure, he had only seen Clay once or twice when they came over for dinner but he didn't want to worry him. Jamie had met Logan, Clay and Sara's son, and he loved the little kid. "It must be fun to have a younger sibling to play with." He had told his father. And it had broken Nathan's heart to know he couldn't give him that."

"Nothing's wrong bud. Clay's just not making sense. I'll be right back." He got up and headed to the kitchen, where he didn't have to worry about Jamie overhearing Clay's nonsense.

"Back up Clay, she's getting rushed where?"

He pressed the phone against his ear and tried to understand what was being said, "Sara, fell and she just collapsed and I don't know, they're taking her and she's gone. And I can't do it and help me Nate."

"Listen, calm down. Go with her. I'll be right over and it'll be fine. Don't panic." He heard Clay mumbled something before hanging up.

He walked back to the living room where Jamie was still sitting. "Listen Jaime, I'm sorry to cut our evening short but something's happened with Clay and I need to get you back to your mom so I can go see what's wrong."

"I can come with you?" Jamie said.

"I have no idea what's happening, so it's better if you don't."

"Oh." He looked disappointed, but if only he knew what was really going on. Jamie picked up his stuff and quickly put a few things in his bag before moving next to his dad.

They got into the car and Nathan took his phone again, but this time to call Haley.

"Haley I need to drop off Jamie." He said just as she answered.

"Why?"

He whispered so Jamie could hear in the back seat "Something is wrong with Sara, Clay said she's not breathing and paramedics are their or something… he was frantic"

"I'll ask Rach to take care of Jamie." He heard her say, "I'm coming."

"You don't have to."

"Someone has to watch Logan, you need to be with Clay, I can handle Logan."

Nathan had gotten to the house in a record amount of time. Haley greeted them at the door and got into the car not long after. Jamie was confused for a moment, as to why his mom was coming to meet them in the car but he didn't question it.

"Rachel's going to meet us in the parking lot there and she's going to take Jamie." Nathan nodded and drove towards Tree Hill memorial. Rachel and Owen were going to go out but they took Jamie to the movies instead. It took them a while to find Clay and when they did, they were surprised to see him in such a mess.

"Is everything alright?" Nathan asked, which he figured afterwards was a stupid question.

"She's gone. One minute she was having grape juice and the next, she was just gone. She's dead Nate." It took all his willpower not to break down. He sat on the chair and couldn't believe it. Gone, Dead. Sara was gone forever.

"I'm sorry." Was all Haley had managed to say. She knew it probably wouldn't help but it was all she could do at the moment.

Nathan frowned when he noticed Clay wasn't with Logan. "Uhh, Clay, where's Logan?"

Clay looked up at him confused, "Oh shit, he's still at the house. I forgot him, I mean I was so worried about Sara that oh my god I forgot about my own son."

All three shared a look and panic filled Clay's face. "I'll go get him."

"Are you sure?" Nathan asked.

"I'm sure." Haley thought for a moment, "Problem is, I came here in your car."

"Oh right." He took out his keys and gave them to her, "Here take my keys." She nodded and headed down the hall towards the exit.

It didn't take her long to reach Clay and Sara's beach house. She knew where it was because it was Dan's old place.

She parked her car in the driveway and walked up the porch. Shit, she thought. What if the door was locked? She bit her lip and it turned out it wasn't locked. Nobody must have thought of locking it after rushing Sara to the hospital.

She walked in the house and tried to find Logan's room. She could hear him, a faint cry coming from the room at the end of the hall. The poor kid must be traumatized; he'd been alone for a while now with no one to answer his cries.

She opened the door and saw Logan standing in his crib, his eyes red and puffy from all the crying he'd been doing. He stopped crying when he saw Haley walk in his room. She went up to him, "Hi there Logan." She picked him up from the bed and decided to pick a few things and put them in a bag, figuring she'd most probably need them.

"It's going to be alright."

As on cue, her phone rang. It was Nathan.

"He's alright, I've got him."

And with that Nathan hung up. Haley knew why and wasn't offended. His friend needed him right now and he didn't have time for small talk. "It's okay Logan, you're going to be okay." Haley said soothing the boys still soft cries. Her heart broke as she looked at him. He had no clue what just happened but it would change his life forever. "Auntie Haley is going to take good care of you."


	9. Heart In Chains

It had been 2 weeks since Sara's death. Clay had been living with Nathan while taking care of Logan. It had been too painful to go back to the beach house, where Sara had died. Every now and then, when Clay needed time to clear his mind and Nathan was following him around, making sure he wouldn't do anything stupid, Haley would take Logan and babysit most days.

Jamie enjoyed those times and helped his mom take care of Logan.

It was a quiet afternoon, a few days after Sara's funeral, when Haley was walking up the stairs to Nathan's house.

"Hi Momma." Jamie said quickly as racked past her into another room.

"Hello to you too." She laughed as Nathan came to greet her. She lifted the young boy out of Nathan's arms and smiled. "Hi Logan."

"Am I still taking Logan this afternoon?" Haley questioned as Nathan nodded.

"Yeah, we'll probably pick him up around seven."

"Great, James Lucas Scott go get your butt in the car." Haley shouted out as she heard a mumbled "Be right there."

"Hey can we talk?" Nathan asked nodding outside.

"Sure" She said walking out.

"Listen Hales...I'm not bailing on you two again I promise but I need to get out of town for a few weeks. Clay and I are going back to New York, he needs to leave and he can't be alone. There is some stuff he needs to handle, he is selling their house and moving out of the apartment they were renting up there." He explained.

"What about Logan?"

"Clay's parents live in Charleston so he is going to leave Logan with them, since Sara's family is a mess."

"Okay, that's fine Nate, I get it… just be there for Clay as long as it takes."

"I will Haley. Thanks for understanding." He smiled as Haley replied "Of course."

"I'm here mom." Jamie said as he walked past them and to the car. "See you later dad."

"Bye Jaim. Bye Hales, Logan." He said turning around and walking towards the house

"Nathan!" Haley called out. He turned around and she let out a sigh, "Don't forget to come back."

He smiled and nodded, "Always."

_It's been a week since I've heard your voice now_

_You know it seems like a hundred years_

_It's hard to sleep, it's a bit alarming_

_I'm a mess when you're not here_

_And it's a simple curse_

_I'm not the first oh but it's a vicious hurt_

_And it just gets worse_

It was half past 11 when Jamie walked into his mom's room. He stood next to her bed and she asked him, "What's up Jimmy Jam?"

"I miss dad." He whispered.

Haley moved over in her bed and Jamie joined her. She rubbed his hair and sighed, "I know you do. But Clay needs him right now but he'll be back."

"Yeah, I know. But I still miss him."

"And that is perfectly fine."

"Can we watch one of his old games?" Jamie asked with puppy dog eyes.

"Sure," Haley smiled and got the remote on her table. She put on the tv and looked for Nathan's game in her recordings. She wouldn't admit it to anyone but she had recorded every single one of his games because she was still proud of him. That he had gone this far and reached his dream, it was amazing. It was just like the past, when he had kept track of her on tour, she'd kept track of him and basketball.

_Oh because you know me well_

_Like a child knows a mother's face_

_Oh and I don't have to tell you, you've got my heart_

_You've got my heart in chains_

_Tears on my pillowcase yeah yeah_

_I don't want it any other way_

On a quiet morning, Peyton decided to go out for a walk. She didn't have anyone, even Nathan wouldn't speak to her. Nobody recognized her anymore, some would say she'd lost it. She didn't think she'd lost it, all she wanted was Lucas and now that she couldn't have him she felt numb. She walked around, trying to clear her head.

What was she doing, she thought.

She walked around town, trying to remember how it was when she used to live here. She noticed how the air here was much different than in New York and it was a lot quieter. Everybody knew each other around here, everyone said hello.

She stood on the corner of the street debating what she should do next. She didn't know, she walked forward and that's when it happened.

For a moment, she felt alive again. The pain made it more real. What had she done?

It had happened so quickly, one moment she was walking and the next her body was being crushed into a million pieces.

She laid there, on the road, broken.

The man from the truck got out of his vehicle with his hands on his head. "Shit, What did I do."

It took less then a second for Peyton's fate to change. One second for her life to crumble.

_Your attention is my addiction_

_A roller-coaster of highs and lows_

_I need your venom, it's been in my system_

_Since the second we said hello_

_You love me deep but I'm incomplete_

_Baby every time you leave I get so weak_

Peyton squinted as the bright lights came in to view. "Good Morning Ms. Sawyer." Someone said as she took in her surrounds. Then she saw her, the short blonde nurse who was carrying a clipboard and looking at the screen next to Peyton writing notes from it.

"What happened?"

"You're in the hospital, you were hit by a truck last week."

"A week ago?"

"Yes, for a few days you were in a medically induced coma so they could wait to perform your surgerys and since then we've been waiting for you to wake up."

"How bad am I?"

"You had some internal bleeding, damage to your liver and kidneys, but they were able to repair that as well as your collapsed lung. Your right leg was broken in five places, that should heal over time since the surgery went well, and you bumped your head but that was minor and shouldn't have any long lasting damage."

"Oh." She whispered looking around, no flowers, no cards, no signs of visitors. "Did anybody come to see me?'

"No" The nurse said flipping through the charts to check. "You haven't had any visitors. I should be going to check on the rest of my patients but if you need anything just press this button." She pointed but Peyton just stared ahead.

No one. Not one person came to visit her. She had no friends. No one who loved her. And who's fault was that? Her own. She was a horrible person, she thought to herself and put a hand to her head as she started to cry. "I tried to ruin my best friends life. I tried to split up a family." She cried for a while before realizing what this meant. She needed to make things right, when she got out of the hospital she would be knocking at Brooke's door until she let her in. No matter how long that took. She would make things right.

_Oh because you know me well_

_Like a child knows a mother's face_

_Oh and I don't have to tell you, you've got my heart_

_You've got my heart in chains_

_Tears on my pillowcase yeah yeah_

_But I don't want it any other way, no no_

It took her a couple of weeks until she finally acted out. She knew it was wrong of her. She regretted her actions deeply but she couldn't change what was already done. She could only hope to move forward and manage to excuse herself for all that she had done. To win her friends back.

She'd gotten out of the hospital a few weeks back and had spent most of her time at home or in rehab. Her condition was improving and she was able to get around on crutches.

One morning, she decided she should talk to Nathan. It had been weeks since she had last spoken to her best friend. She didn't even know what he was up to. She wanted him back, she wanted her best friend back.

And speaking of best friends, she didn't only want him back. She wanted Brooke back too. They'd been friends since they were little and so much had been ruined with her moving and coming back. She understood now that Lucas was with Brooke. She was just jealous. But she could see it, they were in love and Jude was adorable. She couldn't break that, she just had to move on.

And Haley, they were never really close but she knew, for Nathan sake and Jamie's, that she had to make peace with all the grudges she held against her. It wasn't much, but there was still some stuff that she just couldn't understand. I can do this, she thought.

She picked up her phone and took a deep breath. How hard could a phone call to her best friend be? Hard apparently. It took her a couple of minutes until she dialled his phone number and it took her a couple more until she actually called him.

She pressed the device against her ear and waited as the phone rang. She waited and she wanted to hang up, she couldn't do this.

But a part of her knew she could, so she stayed and she waited for him to pick up. But he never did. The line went to voicemail and she thought about hanging up, but she ended up leaving a message.

"Hi Nathan, It's Peyton. Remember me?" She forced a laugh. "I'm sorry, for everything I did and didn't do. I've been a bad best friend. How are you? I don't even know what you're up to. You probably don't even want to talk to me. I'm good, by the way. I wasn't but I am now. I was in an accident and I guess you didn't know. But I'm telling you now. I miss you, I miss my best friend. Alright, I won't bother you, sorry. Bye." She ended the call and threw her phone on her bed. She limped from her room to the kitchen and leaned against the counter.

_Don't leave me helpless_

_Don't leave me lost_

_Don't leave me waiting_

_You're all I've got_

_Don't leave me helpless_

_Don't leave me lost_

_Don't leave me waiting_

_You're all I've got_

She was making progress. She was moving on with her life. She looked around her home and debated what to do next. Then she remembered her phone in her room and she hopped back to it. She sat on her bed, deciding to leave her leg rest a bit.

She picked it up and dialed a familiar number that she hadn't called in over 5 years.

"Hi, you've reached Brooke Davis. I can't take your call right now, please leave a message." She ended the call and let out a desperate sigh. She wanted to fix things and she knew if she didn't do it now she would never get the guts to do it again.

"It's now or never." She told herself. She waited a bit until the cramp in her leg passed before reaching for her crutches and getting out of her father's old house.

She stood in front of the door to Karen's Cafe and waited. She could see them inside and they were happy. She wanted to be happy, to be like them. She knew she could never be like that, but she wanted something similar.

She could see Jude walking around from one parent to the other. He looked so much like his parents it amazed her. He was a perfect mix of both of them. She watched them for a bit until she realised how creepy she was being. She opened the door to Karen's cafe and she used her crutches to keep the door open as she walked in.

The young woman crouching down next to her son looked up and immediately said, "Peyton if you're here to cause problems I'm going to have to ask you to walk back out."

"I'm sorry." She stated. Brooke looked at her and it took a moment but she could see how serious Peyton was being. It was then that she noticed her appearance. She looked horrible.

"What happened?" Lucas asked, slightly concerned. Brooke got up and picked Jude up.

"I was in an accident."

"Are you okay?" Brooke asked. Even if she was mad at Peyton and she wasn't exactly on good terms with her, she still had a heart. And she was concerned about her.

"I'm fine now. But I came here to say I'm sorry, for everything." She paused, "Guess it just took a bus to knock some sense back into me."

Brooke smiled, she admired that Peyton would still joke about something so serious.

"I just… no one visited me, and no one cared that I got hit by a truck. And I didn't deserve for anyone to care. I've been a horrible person. I'm sorry Brooke. For everything. For trying to be with Lucas, for treating you the way I did, for trying to break up your family and importantly for being so horrible to my best friend." She said tearing up, as did Brooke.

"I'll always care Peyton." Brooke whispered.

"I know because that's the kind of person you are and I don't deserve that!" She petitioned.

"Peyton, I love you like a sister. You'll always be a good friend to me. We grew up like sisters. And I can't let that go but I can't ignore the fact that you hurt me. You hurt my family and that's not okay. And it's not that easy to forgive but I love you and I want to be your friend. But you have to let me be your friend, without being stupid about it." Brooke explained. Jude fussed in her arms and she put him down. Lucas stood in the back, leaving the two to have their moment.

"I know and I wish I could go back and fix it all but I can't and I'm extremely sorry."

"I know. I know you Peyton." Brooke smiled slightly.

"And I'm going to make this up to you Brooke, I promise. I want to make things right. I want you back."

"Let's start over." Brooke smiled

"You can't possibly… It's too much." Peyton said shaking her head.

"It's going to be fine Peyton. We can make it work. C'mere" Brooke said wrapping her arms around her friend as best as she could. Peyton savored the feeling before being tapped on the leg. "It's Jude right?" Peyton questioned as Brooke nodded with a smile.

"I love it." Peyton said struggling but eventually taking a seat on the floor. "Hi Jude, I'm Peyton."

He looked up to her shyly and waved.

"It's okay Jude." Lucas said moving behind him. "Go say hi." And with that Lucas looked up at Peyton with a smile and all was forgiven. Just like when they were in high school.

_Oh because you know me well_

_Like a child knows a mother's face_

_Oh and I don't have to tell you, you've got my heart_

_You've got my heart in chains_

_Tears on my pillowcase, yeah yeah_

_I don't want it any other way_

_You know me well_

_I don't want it any other way_

_You know me well_

_I don't want it any other way_


	10. No One's Gonna Love You

Brooke put the car in park as she pulled in front of the building and Peyton started to get out of the car. "Are you sure you don't want me to come in with you?"

"No, you giving me a ride was more than enough, plus Jude shouldn't be stuck in an office. I'll call you when I'm done."

"Alright, I'll be back." Brooke said before pulling away.

"Bye." She smiled and used her crutches to make her way to physical therapy.

She struggled but finally got into the office, she checked in and as she walked to take a seat in a chair while she waited her crutch got stuck in the carpet.

She felt stupid, for falling over. She tried to support herself as she fell but it didn't work. She waited for her body to hit the ground but it never did, which confused her. She opened her eyes and that's when she saw him, standing next to her. He was supporting the weight of her body with one arm. She looked up and her cheeks turned bright red. "I'm sorry, but thanks. For catching me."

"It's no problem." He smiled back.

Adjusting herself she introduced herself, "I'm Peyton, and apparently I'm still getting used to these things." She said nodding to her crutches

"I'm Jake." He smiled "And, I'm your physical therapist so lets see what we can do to get you off of those crutches. My office is right back here." He said leading Peyton down the hall who only smiled beside him.

She nodded and followed him, trying not to get her crutches stuck anywhere again.

_It's looking like a limb torn off_

_Or altogether just taken apart_

_We're reeling through an endless fall_

_We are the ever-living ghost of what once was_

Nathan stood outside the school once more waiting for Jamie. He had gotten back into town late last night and arranged with Haley that he would pick up Jamie afterschool. And he was very excited.

Over all that time away he missed his son more than ever.

He couldn't stay away for that long, he didn't know how he had made it 5 years without seeing him. As much as he'd missed Jamie, he wouldn't lie and say he hadn't missed Haley either.

"Hey bud." Nathan said smiling as Jamie walked down the sidewalk.

"Hey dad!" He said moving to hug his father.

"I missed you bud."

"You too dad. How's Clay?"

"Better." Nathan said shaking his head. "but tonight is about us. Get in the car we're going on an adventure."

_But no one is ever gonna love you more than I do_

_No one's gonna love you more than I do_

This was crazy. This was absolutely and utterly crazy. She couldn't believe this. She knew she shouldn't have trusted him, she knew he'd mess things up at some point. Why did she have to be so naive and trust him to take care of her son. She slammed her car door shut and walked the few steps to his front porch.

She was furious and everyone could tell. She knocked on the door, loudly and waited for someone to open it. And by someone, she meant Nathan. Jamie was safe and he was home and wouldn't stop talking about how much fun he'd had but this was beyond crazy. Who was crazy enough to do this anyways? She was about to knock once more but the door opened before she had the chance to.

"Are you crazy?" She yelled. "Who do you think you are?"

Nathan looked confused, he'd just woken up from a nap and it took some time to understand what she meant. "His dad?"

This was no time for jokes, he noticed the look on her face and he coughed slightly. "I mean, it was my night to have him and I thought it would be okay. I mean, we had to do something and I thought it would be nice-"

She cut him off. "You took my son to Charlotte, without telling me about it. You just took him, I was worried sick!"

"You wouldn't pick up your phone," Nathan defended.

"A little late, no? By the time you phoned me you were most probably already in Charlotte. You flew him to another city that is hours away without telling his mother, the woman who has been with him for most of his life."

"I really thought you would be okay with it, I mean you were encouraging the father/son bonding time." He said.

"Yes, but I didn't mean for you to take him to another city!" She exclaimed.

He stood at the door and waited for a moment, "Why don't we take this inside?" He asked.

She looked around and shrugged, "I'm perfectly fine standing right here."

"The neighbors are going to start to stare at the lunatic yelling at the NBA star." He said walking through the house.

"LUNATIC!" She shouted following him and slamming the door behind her.

_And anything to make you smile_

_It is my better side of you to admire_

_But they should never take so long_

_Just to be over then back to another one_

"It's not like I'm making it up." He laughed.

"Whatever that's not the point." She said following him to the kitchen where he grabbed two beers out of the fridge. "What are you doing, I'm not here to be your drinking buddy."

"I thought it would help you relax. Plus, it's just a beer." He put his arm up and offered her the beer and waited until she caved in and took it from him.

"Fine." She huffed. She took a large gulp before yelling again. "You cannot just take our son and leave Tree Hill with him. How do you not get that? Do I have to write a list of approved locations for you, are you that irresponsible?"

"Look, I'm sorry. If I knew you would have reacted that way I wouldn't have taken him. But look at the bright side, he had fun and I brought him home, safe and sound."

"I just… he's the one person that's constant in my life. He's my baby, he's all I have. I need you to get that, and to be more responsible."

"He's not all you have." Nathan sighed.

"Yeah he is, he never left me did he?"

"That again… really? Listen I'm sorry I didn't know."

"You didn't know because you left! You walked out. Yeah that again."

"Can't we just put that behind us?" He asked.

"I can't just move past this Nathan. Why can't you understand that"

"Because I want us to move forward." He said stepping closer. "I want us to be together again, to be a family." With that he leaned in and kissed her. Pulling away quickly Haley slapped him for doing that once more. His hand moved to his cheek as their eyes connected and before the two of them new it, Haley was kissing him.

_But no one is ever gonna love you more than I do_

_No one's gonna love you more than I do_

Haley wondered how something so wrong could feel so right. She knew she shouldn't be giving in so quickly but she really wanted this. No, she really needed this.

Nathan cupped her face in his hands and deepened the kiss. Normally, Haley would have pulled back because this was nonsense but she didn't want to. Her mind was screaming her no but her body was telling her yes.

One night couldn't hurt, right?

She left before he woke up. She avoided him as much as she could and didn't run into him until later that week when he came to drop Jamie off.

_But someone,_

_They could have warned you_

_When things start splitting at the seams and now_

_The whole thing's tumbling down_

_Things start splitting at the seams and now_

_If things start splitting at the seams and now,_

_It's tumbling down_

_Hard._

"Bye Jamie." He waved to his son, who ran down the hall to his room. He turned his attention to Haley, "Haley-"

"Don't. What happened last week never happened. It doesn't change anything. It was a one time thing. It was a mistake that can never happen again. Let's pretend it never happened and we can just continue living the way we have been for the past few months."

"But Haley-"

She cut him off once more, "No Nathan, that's the end of it."

And with that, they had fallen back into their daily routine. Both acting as if their night of passion had never occurred.

_Anything to make you smile_

_You are the ever-living ghost of what once was_

_I never want to hear you say_

_That you'd be better off_

_Or you liked it that way_

Haley bit her lip as she paced the room. "Hey" Nathan said slowly walking in.

"Hi. I have to talk to you about something."

"Okay?" He said taking a seat on the couch a week later.

"The record label offered me a deal. 30 shows in 30 days. It's cross country and it's my shot back into music."

"That's great." Nathan smiled, for her.

"Yeah so. We'd start soon, next week actually."

"So, do you want me to have Jamie on school nights and then maybe he can stay here on the weekends to see Jude?" Nathan suggested.

"What do you mean? He's coming with me."

"What no way, he's not leaving for a month."

"Yeah he is Nathan. I won't leave him here for that long."

"Yeah well I've missed enough of his life and I won't miss another month."

"Who's fault is that!?"

"My lawyer will be in contact" Nathan said standing up and moving to leave.

"Not if mine is first!"

_But no one is ever gonna love you more than I do_

_No one's gonna love you more than I do_

_But someone_

_They should have warned you_

_When things start splitting at the seams and now_

_The whole thing's tumbling down_

_Things start splitting at the seams and now_

_If things start splitting at the seams and now,_

_It's tumbling down_

_Hard_


	11. What Hurts the Most

True to his word, Nathan's lawyer contacted Haley, and three days later the pair were in court which made Haley wonder how much he had paid to get it arranged so soon.

The judge walked into the courtroom and everyone sat down after he did. The judge nodded his head, "Let's get started."

Haley sat on one side of the room, Nathan on the other. Jamie sat further back with his Brooke and Lucas. Peyton had even showed up, but she was sitting in the far back.

They never thought, 5 years ago that they'd come to this point. A point where they'd be fighting for custody. To be honest, Haley had never thought she'd see Nathan again, yet here he was.

He was trying and she admired that, but she had been the one raising their son. He wasn't aloud to just come back and claim rights to him.

The trial didn't last for all that long, the judge listened to what they both had to say before placing a verdict. They each played dirty, bringing up as much dirt on the other as possible, but nothing hurt more than when Nathan brought up that he thought Haley was an unfit mother because of Jamie being taken away as a baby.

"Please excuse the judge, he will be back momentarily. He would like to speak with Jamie in the back room." One of the men said.

Jamie looked up, not expecting to be called. He looked at his mom for approval and she nodded at him. He made his way slowly to where the judge was standing.

It took half an hour, give or take, before Jamie walked out with the judge not far behind him.

"After hearing all I needed to hear, I've settle an agreement." He paused. "Shared custody."

Everyone looked around, confused. Technically, Haley and Nathan already had shared custody and it didn't answer much of their questions.

"As for the tour, Jamie will spend the first half, here in Tree Hill until his school finishes and then, Nathan shall bring Jamie over to where Haley is and Jamie will stay with his mother for the remainder of the tour." He slammed his gavel and got off his chair.

This was it, she's have to let her baby boy go.

_I can take the rain on the roof of this empty house_

_That don't bother me_

_I can take a few tears now and then and just let them out_

_I'm not afraid to cry every once in a while_

_Even though going on with you gone still upsets me_

_There are days every now and again I pretend I'm OK_

_But that's not what gets me_

Haley was squatted in front of Nathan's house, Jamie standing in front of her. "Now you be good."

Jamie looked at his mom and smiled, "Don't worry mom I'll be fine."

"I know, I've just never let you out of my sight for so long." She passed a hand through his hair.

"We'll be fine Hales, promise. I'll keep you updated on how we're doing." Nathan reassured her.

Haley shot Nathan a glare, this whole thing was his fault. "Alright, I have to go. But I'll see you in two weeks in Utah and you and your dad will have so much fun okay? I love you baby boy." She said quietly pulling him in for a hug.

Nathan watched the two in awe and debated for a moment before joining the hug. "Dad what are you doing?" Jamie asked, squished between his parents.

Haley thought about pulling back for a moment but then she thought that this felt nice, it almost felt like they were a family. But then she remembered it was Nathan's fault that she had to leave on tour without her boy.

"Okay I'll see you soon." She said kissing the top of Jamie's head and standing up.

"Bye momma" Jamie said looking up at her as Haley took two steps backwards. "Break a leg."

Haley smiled taking another step back before Jamie leaped into his mothers arms "I don't want you to go." He said into her hair.

"It's going to be alright, you'll have fun with your dad." She looked up at Nathan and smiled. "Now, I have to go but I'll call you every night."

Jamie smiled and Haley forced herself to walk away and waved to them when she reached her car. She blew them kisses and Jamie caught one and put it in his pocket. Haley laughed, knowing it was a joke he and Brooke had and she'd always thought it was cute.

She was about to enter her car until she felt little arms wrapped around her waist. It took her a moment to figure out it was Jamie's hands wrapped around her. "Hey Jamie, you're going to have to let me go."

He looked up with teary eyes, "But I don't want you to go." Haley looked over at Nathan, her face showing the pain she was going through and he realized that she needed help.

Jamie hugged his mom tighter and Nathan made his way to them. "The sooner you let her go, the sooner she'll be back." Nathan tried to reason.

Jamie looked up, "Be back real quick please. And get me something from every place." He whispered, holding on tighter. Nathan took a hold of his son and nudged him to let go.

"Of course I will." Haley said kissing his forehead once more before moving to where the taxi was. "I'll see you soon and have fun." She smiled before getting in the cab. Haley waved as the driver drove away and once she was out of sight Nathan started walking Jamie inside.

Haley sat in the taxi wiping at her eyes as the tears started rolling down her cheeks, she was strong long enough for Jamie but she couldn't keep it in any longer.

_What hurts the most_

_Was being so close_

_And having so much to say_

_And watching you walk away_

_And never knowing_

_What could have been_

_And not seeing that loving you_

_Is what I was tryin' to do_

Peyton was walking on her crutches for mobility by now. Jake, her therapist had suggested she take a walk every day. It was warm morning and she had been outside by noon for her daily walk. Every day she would pass across a small park but today, something different happened. She sat down on a beach after a few kilometres because her legs get tired. She was watching children playing when she recognizes a little boy. It was Jude.

Peyton looked around and notices Brooke and Lucas walking hand in hand towards the park as Jude wobbled towards the play ground.

Lucas placed a kiss on his wife's cheek and she smiled. They looked so happy. For so long, Peyton wanted their happy ending. She wanted to be in Brooke's place but now as she looked at them, she knew they were happy and they deserved it. She was somehow thankful for that bus hitting her.

On the other side of the park, Lucas and Brooke had decided to bring Jude to the park after he had begged his mom for hours.

"Be careful Jude!" Brooke warned him. Lucas chuckled and let's go of her hand to go in the playground with his son. He was playing in the sand with him while Brooke sat on the bench watching her boys when he noticed her. He almost doesn't see her but there's no doubt it's her. And he won't lie, she looks horrible. He watches Peyton for a brief moment before looking back to his boy and smiling because as much as he had loved Peyton, this is where he'd always wanted to be. With Brooke by his side.

"Hi" Peyton said quietly approaching the bench where Brooke sat.

"Hey Peyt." Brooke smiled scooting over on the bench so Peyton could sit.

"Tell me about him, Jude." Peyton asked as Brooke's smile got bigger.

_It's hard to deal with the pain of losing you everywhere I go_

_But I'm doin' It_

_It's hard to force that smile when I see our old friends and I'm alone_

_Still Harder_

_Getting up, getting dressed, livin' with this regret_

_But I know if I could do it over_

_I would trade give away all the words that I saved in my heart_

_That I left unspoken_

"How are you doing Haley?" Asked Chris as he walked into her dressing room.

"Fine, a little nervous as always." She chuckled.

Chris walked further in the room and asked, "How's Jamie?"

"Oh you know, boys will be boys, last I heard Nathan and Jamie were having a NBA Live tournament." She laughed.

"Sounds like fun." He commented.

"Yah," She paused. "I miss him though, I just can't wait to see him."

Cole walked into the room, as usual, and announced, "It's your turn in 5." Haley thanked him and got up. "Just another show," She whispered to herself.

_What hurts the most_

_Is being so close_

_And having so much to say (much to say)_

_And watching you walk away_

_And never knowing_

_What could have been_

_And not seeing that loving you_

_Is what I was trying to do, oh._

Jamie sat in Nathan's kitchen drinking some juice before Nathan walked into the room. "I've got an idea." He smiled.

Jamie looked up, "What is it?"

"How about some rock band?" He suggested. Jamie thought about it for a moment and smiled, "Sounds fun."

"Alright then, we've got a deal?" Jamie nodded.

"Great, just let me get the console ready and we can start."

Jamie jumped off the stool and followed his father into the living room where he was attempting to make the PS3 work. "Damn it!" He cursed before finally getting it to work. "There you go." He smiled, proud to have gotten it to work.

"Dad, I'm hungry." Jamie said.

"Dude, we ate less than an hour ago." Nathan laughed.

"I know but I'm still hungry." Nathan nodded, "Well let's see what we have then."

Jamie followed his dad into the kitchen and after they'd settled for chips and cookies, they made their way back to the living room.

"Mom would never let me have this much junk food in one night."

Nathan smiled, "Yeah, well your mom isn't here right now. " He laughed.

They were half way through their rock band game when the phone rang. It was Haley.

"Hi mom!" Jamie said. He smiled and continued, "Oh yeah, dad and I are playing rock band it's really fun. He doesn't want to admit it but I'm way better than him. We even dressed up so it would make it more real." He paused. "It was dad's idea."

He talked a little bit more before saying goodbye to his mother and passing the phone over to Nathan.

"Yes, I'm taking good care of him. He's still in one piece and he's enjoying himself. Yes, he's eating healthy. Yes, I know he's going to see Brooke Wednesday, I haven't forgotten. Alright, take care. Bye." He hung up and the boys continued their game.

Nathan and Jamie were having fun, neither noticed the time pass by. Jamie had missed this, having 'boy' time. Sure he loved having his mom around, but having his dad too made it all a bit better.

He'd never really had this much fun with his Uncle Lucas because Jude was always around.

Jamie was enjoying jamming to the song, he was standing up on the couch while his dad stood at the other end with his guitar.

The finale was coming and they had agreed that it would be their last game of the night.

Jamie was standing on the couch. Then, when his final note came he did a leap for it.

He jumped off the couch.

With his guitar in the air.

Nathan laughed pretending to break his guitar.

They were having so much fun.

Until Jamie fell to the ground clutching his leg in pain.

_What hurts the most_

_Was being so close_

_And having so much to say (to say)_

_And watching you walk away_

_And never knowing_

_What could have been_

_And not seeing that loving you_

_Is what I was trying to do_

They'd spent a few hours in the hospital until Jamie was able to finally see a doctor. They sent him to take X-Rays and he waited for another couple of hours until they called him into a room to cast up his leg. "It'll take about 6 to 8 weeks for it to heal. Luckily, it's a simple fracture that will heal with time. We just need to cast it up and off you go."

They were home by the middle of the night and Jamie was exhausted. "How about we wait until tomorrow to call your mom?"

Jamie yawned, "Good idea."

Nathan tucked Jamie in, before going to bed himself, although he barely slept. He was up almost every hour to check on Jamie and felt horrible that he let this happen.

Haley would be furious with him. She'd left Jamie in his responsibility and he'd managed to mess it up. Well actually, the judge had left Jamie with him and he somehow felt like an incompetent parent. How would he had let Jamie fall off like that?

Sometime during his deep thoughts he fell asleep. But it wasn't for long. He woke up again and pulled himself out of bed, realizing he wouldn't be getting any more sleep for the night. He opened his phone to check the time and noticed he had a text message from Haley.

Hope you and Jamie had fun xx He read.

When morning came, Jamie wobbled down to the living room and Nathan frowned, "What happened to your crutches?"

Jamie shrugged, "They hurt me. I don't like them."

Nathan thought for a moment, "I think we can fix that." He went up to get Jamie's crutches and attached some cloths to the edges. "There, now it shouldn't hurt you as much." He smiled, proud to have come up with a solution. "Wanna facetime your mom? She said she would be available all morning."

Jamie smiled, "Sure!"

Nathan went to get his laptop and set FaceTime up. He called Haley and they waiting a little until the video connected.

"Hey bud- woah, what's on your face?" With all that had happened yesterday, they had forgotten to wash off their disguise after their rock band tournament.

"Dad and I wanted the game to be more real," He explained.

Haley laughed, "Ah, alright kid."

"So I have something to tell you." Nathan said nervously rubbing his forehead, only to see the white paint cover his fingers. "First off he is fine."

Jamie nodded next to him, "It's not his fault mama."

Haley waited for them to explain themselves.

"Well, while we were playing. Jamie kind of had an accident and" he paused, "Sort of broke his leg…"

"What?!" Haley said quickly nearly falling out of her seat. "Did you go to the hospital."

Nathan quickly moved the camera to show her his cast.

"Yes, and he's fine. The doctor said something about a simple fracture and that it would heal with time."

Jamie pointed his cast and thought for a moment, "Mama, remember when you told me you broke your leg and your friend Peyton drew on your cast. Well, do you think she would want to draw on mine?"

"I'm sure she would." Haley said biting her lip. She wanted to scream at Nathan, she was pissed, she wanted to have her baby back in her arms safe and sound but then she remembered that Nathan loved Jamie almost as much as she did and would do anything to protect him. Accidents happened sometimes. Nathan couldn't have prevented this. "Well, as long as you are okay baby, did it hurt?"

"At first but now I don't feel it anymore." He smiled.

"Good. What are you two going to do today?"

The boys looked at each other, "We haven't thought about that yet."

"Well why don't you get uncle Lucas to bring over some sandwiches from Karen's and he can bring Jude and maybe you guys can play NBA Live together. Your dad can see about Aunt Peyton stopping by to draw on your cast but maybe if you're good he will make you blueberry pancakes."

"I like that idea," Jamie turned to his day, "Can we do that?"

Nathan smiled, "Of course."

"And then in two days you two will be in Utah with me."

"Do I get special privileges now that I have a cast?" Jamie asked.

"Of course, what kind of mom would I be if I didn't." Haley laughed

"YES!" He exclaimed.

"Alright I have to get going to sound check but I love you."

"I love you too mama." Nathan watched the two and was about to pitch in and say I love you as a joke but then figured it would be best not too. He knew that if he said it, it would mean something to him and it would cause some awkwardness in-between them and he didn't want that.

"See you soon Hales." Nathan smiled.

"Bye Nate." She said before ending the call.

_Not seeing that loving you_

_That's what I was trying to do_


	12. Poison and Wine

Nathan and Jamie had boarded on a flight a few days later. Their time alone was coming to an end but Jamie missed his mom and couldn't wait to see her. He also wanted to show her his cast, that Peyton had managed to draw on.

When she first got the call she let out a few tears. Peyton was getting her friends back, she felt whole again.

She went over to Nathan's house the next day and her and Jamie talked and bonded. It was nice. Jamie liked having a new friend around and weirdly, they compared injuries.

The following day, Nathan had some business to take care of and had let Jamie stay with Rachel. She claimed to miss him and he took the opportunity to let them spend the morning together. When night came, they packed their stuff for the next morning.

They arrived in Utah early the next day, making sure to have time to visit the city and have some fun. When they arrived, Nathan managed to get a hold of Haley.

"Hey, are you boys here yet?"

"Yes, we're just grabbing a bite." He said.

"Ok, cool, well I have one last thing to do and then I can meet you back at the hotel?" She asked.

"Sure." They said goodbye and hung up.

Nathan looked at Jamie, "You feel like visiting the city?"

Jamie smiled, "Yes. But I don't want to walk with these." He pointed his crutches.

"I think we can fix that."

They had managed to rent a wheelchair when they got to the hotel.

"This is awesome!" He'd exclaimed.

"Now bud, you ready to go and see this city?" Jamie nodded and they made their way out of the hotel.

"Where to?"

"I don't know, I've never been here."

"Smart ass" Nathan muttered laughing. "How about we find a touristic cabin and see what they have?"

Jamie stuck his tongue out at his dad and suggested they walk around town and see what they had. Even if he wouldn't do much walking.

"Are you hungry?

"No we just ate."

"But I meant, are you hungry for an actual lunch." He replied.

"Nah, I'm fine for now."

"If your mom asks, tell her I ordered you a fruit and veggie tray on the plane."

This made Jamie laugh, "Right dad."

They walked around for a few hours until they got a call from Haley saying she was ready to meet up with them. They headed back to the hotel and found Haley waiting for them in the lobby.

As soon as she saw them she came running.

"Oh Jamie I missed you so much. I love you." She embraced him tightly.

"I missed you too mama" He said wrapping his arms around her as Haley let out a few tears.

"So, did you have a good time with your dad?"

"Now," She pulled away and wiped a tear. "What have you boys been up to?"

"I had a lot of fun with dad." He told her.

She rubbed his hair, "I'm glad."

Haley looked up at Nathan and smiled. "Thanks, for taking care of him."

"Of course." Nathan said as Haley finally let Jamie go and slowly moved to hug Nathan.

"I missed you too." Nathan whispered into her hair so that way Jamie wouldn't hear. But by the way her body stiffened he knew she heard. "Plus he was the best" He said pulling away.

"So Jaim, you wanna see the tour bus?"

"Yes!" he exclaimed and paused. "Can dad come with us?"

"Of course" Haley laughed "What are we just going to leave him here?"

"You never know." He laughed.

"Stop being a goof and lets go." She smirked handing him his crutches. "The wheelchair won't fit on the bus but I can have Jack store it in the back for when you need it. C'mon it's out back."

Jamie let out a defeated sigh and took his crutches. "Fine. But I like the wheelchair better."

"Jaim, it won't fit inside the bus, trust me." Haley said pushing the empty chair down the ramp out back.

"Come on Jamie, you'll get it back later." Nathan said.

"Yeah you're going to need it when I show you the coolest place in Utah."

"Awesome!" He wobbled with his crutches to where the tour bus was.

* * *

><p>"Hey Peyton, how are you doing today?" Her physical therapist, Jake asked.<p>

"Much better," She smiled.

"Have you been working on those exercises I gave you last week?" She nodded. "Great, now, just go over there and we'll get started on a few new exercises."

Peyton made her way over to where Jake had pointed her and she proceeded to do what he'd told her to do. During the sessions, they wouldn't talk much. The previous week, things had still been a little harsh with her friends, but now she'd managed to fix everything. Nathan had even called and asked if she could draw on Jamie's cast.

"He wants a drawing. Says he remembers Haley telling him you drew on hers in high school."

"I would love to." She told him and they'd managed to plan something for the next day.

Peyton looked over and noticed a picture on Jake's desk. As she did her exercises, she leaned over and tried to get a glance of the picture.

She saw Jake and a little girl, around the same age as Jamie. "Your daughter?" She asked.

Jake looked over to what she was looking at and nodded. "That's Jenny."

"She's beautiful."

"Thanks, she is quite the charmer." The continued on with their usual session but something had changed. Peyton was more open and Jake noticed it.

She was trying to hold a conversation. She was making efforts when doing her exercises. Jake knew something good had happened and he was happy for her.

Sure, he didn't know her much but he knew she deserved to be happy. Their session ended at a quarter to 2, like usual. Peyton went ahead and waited until Jake came back.

"Well, that's all for today. Remember to do your exercises twice a day and everything should be fine." He smiled."Thank you." She got up and headed towards the door.

Jake's phone rang and she couldn't help but pause at the door. The phone call wasn't too long and Jake hung up before mumbling "Damn it!"

Peyton turned around and subtly asked, "What's wrong?" Jake thought for a moment, "That was my dad. He was babysitting Jenny and her dress for her dance show tomorrow ripped and he says she's panicking."

"Oh, is-"

"And my dad says he can't fix it. He says my mom used to do stuff like this. And I have no idea how to fix a dress. This is Jenny's final show with that school and she's freaking out because she has no dress-" He rambled on.

"Hey Jake?"

He stopped and stare at her. "Yeah?"

"You're rambling."

"Right. Sorry." He paused. "You probably don't care and yeah, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry." She waited. "And about that dress. I know this might sound weird but, if you want I could help you fix it."

"You would do that?" He asked.

"Absolutely."

* * *

><p>Peyton came over to Jake's house later than night. She knocked on the door and was greeted by a little girl.<p>

"Hi, you must be Jenny?" She asked. The little girl nodded before running back in the house. Peyton stood there for a moment before Jake came to greet her.

"Hey, sorry she's just really excited." He smiled shyly, "Thanks for coming over. My mom left not long ago so it's just me and Jenny."

He moved out of the way to let her come in and she smiled.

"Jenny come here!" Jake yelled to his daughter. She came back to the entrance with mismatched socks and dresses in her hands. Jake took Jenny's hand and said, "Meet Peyton."

"Hi." She smiled.

"Hello, I hear you need help fixing a dress?" Peyton asked her. She nodded. "Well, I think I can fix it for you."

"Really? Daddy sucks in fixing clothes." Jake pretended to be wounded which made Peyton laugh.

Jenny's dad turned back to her and asked her to run to her room to get her dress while he and Peyton moved themselves into the kitchen.

"Thank you again, for doing this."

"It's my pleasure." She smiled.

"Alright, now let's look at this dress." Peyton mumbled once Jenny had brought the dress to her. She examined it and once she found the problem she started to fix it. Jenny asked a lot of questions, trying to understand what Peyton was doing.

"I want to learn too." Jenny said.

"Well, I can show you the easy stuff."

Jake just watched them interact and a feel of pleasure filled him. Jenny had never had a female figure in her life and seeing her interact so openly with Peyton made him happy. The way she was babbling on about her friends and trying to learn at the same time filled his heart with joy.

"There, it's all fixed." Peyton exclaimed after a while.

"Yay!" Jenny jumped up in joy.

"Why don't you try it on?" Peyton suggested and the little girl just nodded.

"I'll be right back." Peyton nodded.

Jake stared at Peyton and she turned her attention back to him. "What?" She asked.

"Nothing it's just, seeing you with her… I've just never seen her so happy with a female figure." He paused, "Her mom, she's not around and she's either with me or her grand parents and it's just not the same and-"

"It fits!" Jenny ran back in the kitchen with her dress on.

"Perfect." Peyton smiled.

Jenny twirled in her dress and sat with them talking about what to expect during her show. At some point she pausedd and turneded to Peyton, "Will you come?"

Jaake and Peyton both looked at each other, stunned by Jenny's question. Peyton watched Jake closely to see his reaction, "If she wants to come, I don't see why not."

Peyton looked at both of them and then turned to Jenny, "I'll be there."

* * *

><p>They had spent the evening together and Jamie had a ball. He loved having his parents together. Sometimes he wondered what it would be like to have grown with both of them by his side.<p>

They all headed to their hotel rooms because tomorrow was another busy day. Haley was in rehearsal early that morning and Nathan and Jamie came to meet her when they woke up.

Nathan texted Haley that they were on their way and they went ahead and met her there. Jamie was fascinated to see how it worked behind the scenes. He watched his mom rehearse on stage from the sidelines.

"She's really good." He told his dad.

Nathan smiled, "I know. You're mother is the most talented person I have ever seen."

"Hey Jaim, how do you like it so for?" Chris asked walking over as Nathan stiffened.

"It's really cool!" He exclaimed

"Yeah, did your mom tell you what happens after the show tonight? The roadies pack up all our stuff and we head off in the bus to Vegas, well sleep on the bus tonight and wake up in another city tomorrow."

"That's even more awesome, I can't wait." He turned around, "Will you come dad?"

"Jamie we went over this" Nathan laughed "I'm here for two more days, so yeah I'll be there."

"Awesome."

"And I can show you all the ways we prank and scare your mom and Mia on the bus."

"Chris would you stop socialize and come up and practice Stars with me." Haley sighed into the microphone.

"That's my call guys." He smiled and made his way onto the stage

"And let me bet, your telling him about how you gave me a heart attack this morning."

* * *

><p>Jenny was on the stage as they introduced the show. All the dancers were. She looked across the crowd hoping to see Peyton. It's strange really, how much Jenny seemed to like Peyton when she knew so little about her. An instant connection, some would say. Jenny's eyes lit up when she saw her dad in the crowd and she waved at him. Some people were still entering the theatre and taking their seats. Jenny looked through the crowd hoping to spot the blonde headed lady who had fixed her dress. Just as she was about to stop searching, she saw her hurry in and her smile got brighter.<p>

On the other side of the stage, Peyton took a seat next to Jake and he smiled, "Hey you made it." He embraced her; it only seemed right.

"Thanks for coming, really." He waited, "She was worried you wouldn't come."

"Of course I came." She smiled. "You did a great job with her."

"Thanks" Jake said, they quieted as the recital started.

When it was over Jenny ran out from behind the stage and right into Peyton's leg, giving her good leg a hug. "You came."

"Jenny, you were amazing."

"Really Peyton?" Jenny question.

"Oh yeah."

Jake laughed, "What am I chopped liver?"

"Hi daddy."

"Listen Peyton we were going out to get cupcakes… do you want to come?" Jake asked as Jenny's eyes lit up.

"I would love to" Peyton smiled.

* * *

><p>"Mom how long have you been getting ready for?" Jamie said walking back into the prep room of the club they were in tonight. He and Nathan had gone to get ready themselves, grabbed something to eat, and even walked around outside exploring. Haley had started to pick out an outfit when they left and she still wasn't even ready now.<p>

"It takes a while okay, I don't need your sass." Haley said rolling her eyes as she applied her mascara and turned around.

"This is show business, I don't know it's like a must when it comes to getting ready."

"Wow" Nathan whispered looking at her up and down."Thanks" She muttered looking down.

"You look beautiful." He told her. Jamie nodded, "You look really pretty mama."

"Thanks Jaim. So it's almost showtime, why don't you two take a seat in the crowd."

When Haley did finally take the stage she smiled out at the crowd, most importantly she searched for Nathan and Jamie, when she did she started to speak. "Hey guys, thank you all for coming out. I'm so excited to play for you all but most importantly, I want to dedicate this performance to my son. I love you Jamie."

"She really is beautiful." Nathan whispered again breathlessly. "Of course she is, now be quiet I'm trying to listen."

* * *

><p>They were all laying on the bed in the back of the tour bus having some nice family time. Nathan and Haley had attacked Jamie and started to tickle him. It was nice, they were all having fun and acting like a family.<p>

"Stop, stop please." Jamie laughed.

"Is your leg okay?" Haley asked concerned.

"It's fine but it tickles so much." He laughed.

Nathan bit his lip before moving to tickle Haley himself. They both fell off the bed, Nathan on top of Haley as they both laughed.

Their eyes met and Nathan moved his face closer to hers.

Haley let out a scream as Jamie went ahead and started tickling his mother. He was getting his revenge for before.

"Alright, let's lay off your mom." Nathan said getting up and helping her up as well.

"Jamie want to see a cool car accident outside the window?" Chris shouted walking in.

"Yeah!" He said as Haley rolled her eyes. Chris threw Jamie on his back and ran them to the front.

"You did a great job raising Jamie." He told her after Jamie left with Chris.

"Nathan," She started.

"No, you need to know that you did an amazing job and I'm sorry I wasn't there."

Haley looked at him, "Nathan, please don't start. It's fine, it's in the past. And you're doing good, he loves you."

Nathan nodded slowly as Haley changed the subject. "So i don't know if you follow my twitter."

"I do."

"Well were doing a compilation album and I'm excited, and in a week, part of my concert is going to be televised in an tv special and that day my newest single off my album comes out."

"I'm really happy for you Hales."

"So hows the tour?"

"Great, better than the last one."

"Really?"

"It's a dream come true and so much is coming from it. Like the compilation album. We are going to have 3 songs with all of us, two of me and Mia, two of Mia and Chris, and two of Chris and II, and then one solo song for all of us.""

"Hey Hales, Nathan" Mia said leaning on the door frame. "Chris and Jamie are daring each other to eat gross combinations of food."

"James Lucas Scott" Haley shouted getting up. "It's time for bed."

"But mama, I'm not tired."

"Listen to your mother" Nathan said moving to stand behind her, before helping him into the bed.

So Jamie could go to bed earlier than the rest, he had the bedroom in the back with the door that shut, everyone else had the bunks in the hall. Walking out of the room Haley saw that the entire band was already laying their bunks either watching tv or reading.

The pair sat down on the couch across from Chris and Mia who were chatting as Mia strummed at her guitar.

"Oh Chris." Haley said quickly pulling a paper out of her back pocket "I couldn't sleep last night, so I kinda wrote a duet for us.."

"You wrote a duet?" He questioned.

"Yeah… it was like a story and it was the best way to write it. Anyway, wanna try it?"

"Sure." He smiled.

"Mia could you play the guitar? Just strum the e chord for the first verse till you get the rhythm then pick it up."

Mia nodded starting slowly.

_You only know what I want you to_

_I know everything you don't want me to_

_Oh your mouth is poison, your mouth is wine_

_You think your dreams are the same as mine_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_I always will_

Nathan saw Haley start to tear up and he started to twiddle his thumbs.

_I wish you'd hold me when I turn my back_

_The less I give the more I get back_

_Oh your hands can heal, your hands can bruise_

_I don't have a choice but I'd still choose you_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

"Match me on this one." Haley said quickly to Chris as she sang the end higher than before.

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_Oh I don't love but I always will_

_Oh I don't love you but I always will_

_I always will_

_I always will_

_I always will_

_I always will_

_I always will_

* * *

><p>Hey guys! Thank you for all the great feedback, but just to let you know we've know how this story was going to end when we started so anyone saying that we need LeytonBrucas/Brake/any couple to end together...sorry but your just going to have to wait and see :). This was one of my favorite chapters to write so I hope you enjoyed and just so you know this story will end around chapter 17 so prepare yourself.

But I realized that we haven't been putting up who sang the title songs so here they all are and the next chapter is there as well ;)

Chapter 1: Alone by Celine Dion

Chapter 2: Don't Walk Away by Bethany Joy Lenz

Chapter 3: Demons by Imagine Dragons

Chapter 4: Breathe Me by Sia

Chapter 5: Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri

Chapter 6: Apologize by One Republic

Chapter 7: New York by Snow Patrol

Chapter 8: Without You (first one by Colbie Caillat, second by Ingrid Michaelson)

Chapter 9: Heart in Chains by Kate Voegele

Chapter 10: No One's Gonna Love You by Band of Horses

Chapter 11: What Hurts the Most by Rascal Flatts

Chapter 12: Poison and Wine by The Civil Wars

Chapter 13: Mirror by Justin Timberlake


	13. Mirrors

It was time for soundcheck the following morning when they finally arrived at the next venue. Jamie was still sleeping seeing as they had stayed up way past his bedtime the night before, but everyone else was awake. Nathan had helped the crew unload all of the equipment before taking a seat out in the crowd. He had set up his computer to respond to emails while everyone warmed up. Just as he started to type a response to a shoe company about being a sponsor Haley took the stage. He stopped in his tracks and kept his eyes on her the entire time.

"Hey Nate?" She questioned after her set was over. "Can you go check on Jamie, make sure he isn't looking for us?"

"Sure." He smiled at her concern for their son. Kenny, the driver, was staying on the bus as well as Blair, Haley's assistant, so Jamie wasn't alone, but neither of them were his parents. Nathan finished replying to the email before packing up his computer and taking it with him. He threw it in his bunk when he got on the bus before peaking into the back room. Jamie was still out like a light, he definitely was his son.

As Nathan stepped on the side of the stage to tell Haley that he quieted. Haley was leaning against the big piano which Mia sat at playing. The two sounded beautiful as they sang together before they stopped.

"And what if the chorus went something like this..." Mia lead off playing a riff. Nathan could tell the song was still in progress but he thought it was great already.

"I like it, play it again but what if you switch that E minor to an E sharp at the end."

Haley suggested as Mia nodded and did so. Haley started tapping her hand against the piano as they restarted the song and once again sang together, but that was when Nathan noticed what had been making the clicking noise against the piano. Her wedding ring. She had been wearing her wedding and engagement ring that day, granted it was on her right hand not left, but she was still wearing it.

This only left Nathan with questions like why, and how long had she been wearing it that he didn't notice?

Nathan went back to his bunk in the bus to think. He laid there for what seemed like hours until Jamie finally walked out of his room, bringing Nathan out of his thoughts.

"Dad?"

"Hey Jaime." Nathan smiled moving to get out of his bunk. "You slept a long time."

"I was really tired but now I'm all rested!" Jamie smiled.

"I think Chris and the guys wanted to show you around todays venue, if you want to go hang out with them."

"Awesome!" He nodded, "I want to go."

"Alright." Nathan said leading Jamie to find them and when he did Nathan once again went to sit by himself. How long had Haley been wearing her ring? Why was she wearing it? Should he talk to her about it?

He hadn't seen the time fly by and eventually, Haley had made it off the stage after they had finished the sound check. She had seen Jamie go off with Chris and went to find Nathan, who hadn't come back. She eventually found him sitting in front of the venue on a bench staring off into space.

"Hey." She said.

"Oh, hey." Nathan said quietly looking up at her. He bit his lip, which Haley had known he never did. Unless he was really nervous. She took a seat next to him.

"What's up?"

"You're wearing your ring." He said quietly.

She looked down at her hand and started playing with it. "Oh, yeah."

"Why?" He questioned out loud. "I just… why? And how long?"

"I wear it for good luck." She said.

"What?" Nathan questioned looking at her like she was crazy. "Our marriage didn't last but you still wear the ring as a charm?"

"I know but… this is where I wore it last time I went on tour It reminds me that the last time I was here, performing on stage, that you were in Tree Hill encouraging me to follow my dreams. You made my career possible and you believed in me even when I thought you wouldn't."

"I will always believe in you Haley, I just don't really get this."

"You still wear yours, around your neck." She said as he looked away. "I've seen it."

"But that's because I love you and I'm not giving up, not for luck."

She sighed, "I used to wear mine. All of the time until it became a reminder that you had left me and Jamie and it would hurt too much to wear it."

Nathan shook his head. "I don't know what you want from me Haley." He stood up. "I'm trying here but you just can't ever get over this. I've apologized and I'm doing my best. I made a mistake, I know it was the worst decision ever. Why can't we just move on. I love you and you love me, why can't it be that simple?" He said before walking away not letting her reply.

"But I am trying." She sighed, although he didn't hear her. Truthfully she wanted to move on but didn't know how. She wore her wedding ring because it gave her hope, hope for a future. But… we're they already too far gone?

"Nathan" Haley whispered to Nathan after the show. The crew was loading their bags and Jamie was already asleep. Haley pulled Nathan aside behind the curtain. "I'm trying okay. I am trying." She said before walking away herself, not letting him reply.

* * *

><p>The next day the three had a great time exploring around the Grand Canyon, something else Jamie appreciated but before he knew it another day passed and this was it. The moment they had all been dreading. No one would lie, not even Haley, that these last couple of days had been fun. For once, they had been acting like a real family. Even after their small fight, Nathan and Haley hadn't mentioned it and set it all aside for Jamie.<p>

"I don't want you to go." Jamie mumbled, hugging his dad.

"It's only two weeks and then you'll be back in Tree Hill and we'll get to hang out some more. Plus, you'll have an amazing time with your mom."

"Promise?"

"I promise." Jamie smiled.

Haley walked over, "Thanks Nate for everything. He had a lot of fun, this means a lot to me. I was scared at first to let him go, but it was worth it. He got to know his dad a little more."

"Thanks Haley." And for a moment everything seemed good. They good finally accept that the past was behind them and at the moment, they were a great family.

"Hales can I talk to you for a minute." Nathan asked.

"Sure." She said following Nathan away so Jamie couldn't see.

"What's up?" She asked, when he finally stopped moving.

He sighed slowly before starting "You know everything about me, and that's what I want. You know my weaknesses, my accomplishments, my faults and my dreams. You know me better than I know myself. Your mouth is love, and beauty."

Haley bit her lip and shut her eyes as he changed the lyrics to her song. "Nathan don't do this." She said turning away.

"I wish you'd hold me as I turned away." He said wrapping his arms around her and continued to speak. "Your hands heal me. I will always choose you. Your dreams are the same as mine. My dream is for you and Jamie to be happy and healthy... With me. I love you. I always will. Always and Forever."

Nathan stopped talking and turned Haley around in his arms, leaning down to kiss her. Slowly and deeply, he pulled away leaving her speechless. He didn't give her a chance to speak before walking away. She heard him in the distance say a final goodbye to Jamie and by the time she walked out he was walking into the airport, not looking back.

"C'mon Jimmy Jam. Let's get going." She smiled getting on the bus with him. As he started to play video games with Mia she moved to the back lounge and laid there thinking. What did she want?

* * *

><p>"The pilot says we have reached a high enough altitude that you can all pull out your devices and remove your seatbelts, but remember to watch the light in case we hit turbulence." Nathan heard over the intercom as he reached into his pocket for his phone. He plugged in his headphones and shut his eyes as he listened to the song he downloaded just hours earlier. Justin Timberlake's voice filled through his ears, which was not a normal occurrence but he needed to hear the lyrics to this song fully and on his own.<p>

_Haley walked out on stage and joined Chris, she took a seat at the stool set up in front of a microphone for her. "Hey guys"_

_"So Haley and I have a little surprise for you" Chris smiled grabbing his guitar and taking a seat next to her. "Haley said she wanted to cover a song with me and this is what I came up with and forced her into." He smirked as Haley laughed. "1, 2, 3, 4" He whispered as she started singing._

**_Aren't you somethin' to admire?_**

**_'Cause your shine is somethin' like a mirror_**

**_And I can't help but notice_**

**_You reflect in this heart of mine_**

**_If you ever feel alone and_**

**_The glare makes me hard to find_**

**_Just know that I'm always_**

**_Parallel on the other side_**

**_'Cause with your hand in my hand and a pocket full of soul_**

**_I can tell you there's no place we couldn't go_**

**_Just put your hand on the glass_**

**_I'll be tryin' to pull you through_**

**_You just gotta be strong_**

_Haley bit her lip as her eyes searched the crowd and she started to sing._

**_'Cause I don't wanna lose you now_**

**_I'm lookin' right at the other half of me_**

**_The vacancy that sat in my heart_**

**_Is a space that now you hold_**

**_Show me how to fight for now_**

**_And I'll tell you, baby, it was easy_**

**_Comin' back here to you once I figured it out_**

**_You were right here all along_**

_Haley's eyes locked on Nathan's as she continued to sing the words that were so true._

**_It's like you're my mirror_**

**_My mirror staring back at me_**

**_I couldn't get any bigger_**

**_With anyone else beside of me_**

**_And now it's clear as this promise_**

**_That we're making two reflections into one_**

**_'Cause it's like you're my mirror_**

**_Haley started to choke on her own words_**

**_My mirror staring back at me,_**

_Her voice broke and tears rolled down her face as she sang the lyrics, she looked over at Chris, whispered "I'm sorry" and ran off the stage, tears streaming down her face._

She was sitting in her bunk of the tour bus thinking of home. She was having the time of her life here but she couldn't lie and say she missed home. She was glad to have Jamie with her but it just didn't feel the same.

She tried to think back of good memories but the only that came to her mind was of last night when she ran off stage crying.

Haley outwardly groaned, she knew she shouldn't have sang that song with Chris, she set herself up for disaster. She felt ashamed of herself, for letting herself break like that but she just couldn't help it. When her eyes met his, she had lost it. Everything they had been through, it had all came flooding back and she just couldn't take it.

* * *

><p><em>Mirrors by Justin Timberlake<em>


	14. Red

It had been a couple of days since Nathan had left them on their own. Jamie was enjoying his time on tour with his mom. He would try and learn how things worked with people aboard the tour bus and everyone loved him.

"You're awesome kid." One of the boys would say and they would bump fists.

Haley had finished a show in the city and had the rest of the day off. She'd spent most of the night out after her show to sign autographs and attend interviews while Jamie stayed in the tour bus with one of the crew members. It was half past one and he was getting bored, he wanted to do something. He knew his mom had been up all night and had gone to bed late this morning but he just needed to go out and do something. He walked up to where his mom was sleeping and sat down next to her. He watched her sleep for a little while until he started to gently shake her.

"Momma," he whispered.

He nudged her a couple of times until her eyes flickered open.

"Is something wrong Jamie?" She mumbled.

"I"m bored."

She rubbed her eyes, "What time is it?"

"It's past lunch time."

Haley sat up in bed and glanced at the clock for a more accurate time. "Well, I guess that's all the sleep I'll be getting."

Jamie nodded eagerly and waited for his mom to get out of bed. "So, what are we going to do?"

Haley looked out the window to try and see where they were. They were headed back to North Carolina, but first they would make a few stops in Georgia and South Carolina. "Well, we're somewhere near Atlanta and if you wait a few more hours we can visit the city?"

Jamie nodded, "What is there to do?"

"Well, there's a six flag park and I'm sure Chris would want to go on the rides with you. Or we can visit the aquarium."

"Is there a Zoo?" Jamie asked eagerly.

"There sure is."

"Can we go there?" Haley smiled.

"If you want to, then sure."

"YAY!" Jamie jumped off the bed and ran out of the room.

"But we still have a few hours to go!" Haley yelled after him.

* * *

><p>It took them 2 hours before they reached the Atlanta Zoo. Haley had asked Chris and Mia if they wanted to tag along but Mia had said it would be good for Jamie to spend some time alone with his mom.<p>

"Mom, I want to go see a Panda. No, I want to see a Tiger. Do you think they have a Kangaroo? What about a Lion?"

"Wow, slow down Jaim. We'll get to see all of them, don't worry." Haley bought their tickets and then headed to rent a wheelchair for Jamie.

"There you go." She said as she rolled the chair to her son. "Awesome." He smiled.

They entered the Zoo and took a left. They followed the path Jamie was giving his mom. He had the map and was preparing their route. "The elephants and the Lions are on the right and the Meerkat and the Rhino and the others are on the left."

"Well then, let's go." They walked around the zoo and Jamie loved watching the different animals play.

Once they had reached the pandas and spent some time watching them, Jamie looked at his mom and said, "I'm hungry."

Haley took the map from her son and examined it. "We're just next to the dining area. We'll finish off this section and go get something to eat. Sound good?"

Jamie nodded and grabbed his crutches to get closer to the pandas. They reached the grand patio not to long later and Haley bought some food for them. They ate and Jamie talked about recent development in his life before they threw their trash and continued their visit.

They reached the Kangaroo's area and Jamie admired the baby kangaroo jumping around it's confinements. "Mom, can I have one?" He asked.

"I don't think so." Haley said.

"Fine." He pouted. "Then I'll ask dad." Haley tried not to laugh and pushed Jamie's wheelchair up to the petting zoo. Haley handed her son his crutches and he went near the animals to pet them.

They finished off their visit and headed back to their tour bus.

* * *

><p>Later that night, when Jamie was tucked in bed he looked up to his mom before falling asleep and whispered, "Thank you mom, I had the best time. The zoo was really fun."<p>

Haley smiled, "I'd do anything for you Jamie."

"I just wish dad could be here." He mumbled as his eyelids closed shut.

Haley tucked Jamie in, pulling the blankets to his face and placing a soft kiss to his temple before whispering, "I do to." She moved back to lay in her bunk and pulled out her phone.

Haley took a deep breath as she scrolled through the photos on her phone from the tour. There were ones of her joking around with everyone, they took a photo together before and after every show, and then there were many when Jamie came. They even had a few of her, Nathan, and Jamie. She came across a photo that she had never seen before. Nathan must have taken it while she was on stage. She was so happy. She loved being on tour but now it was over. She had one show left in Tree Hill but then it was all over. But she was glad she wanted to be home. This meant she could finish up her album then do the compilation album and go on tour again. Swiping her finger she came across maybe her favorite photo yet. Nathan was holding Jamie on his back with one arm and another was wrapped around Haley as they all smiled in front of the Grand Canyon. They looked like a normal, happy family. Then the next photo they were all laughing as Chris fell behind the camera, and in the final one Nathan had put Jamie down and picked Haley up in surprise pretending to throw her off the cliff. She smiled only wishing their life wasn't of two parents continually fighting, but of them together. She looked at her rings once more, knowing she lied to Nathan when she said she wore them for good luck. She loved that man, but she didn't know what she actually wanted. All she knew was she didn't want to be hurt again. Swiping her phone once more a tear ran down her cheek. Haley and Nathan were both smiling at the camera as they sat next to one another and leaned in close as Nathan held the phone and took the photo. They had been goofing around and in the photo they looked so happy. She wanted to be that happy, with him. She wanted him, but she was afraid.

* * *

><p>"My bed!" Haley said excitedly sprawling out on it, Brooke laying next to her on one side, Rachel on the other. Jamie was with Karen, per her request after not seeing him for so long. Thankfully, Nathan was okay with putting off having Jamie for a night.<p>

"We missed you." Rachel said.

"It's great to have you home." Brooke said.

"It's great to be home." Haley smiled before groaning as Lucas laid on top of her. "Get off."

"But I thought you missed us?"

"Not you fat ass." She said trying to roll out from under him.

"As much as I missed you, I'm leaving this awkward threesome." Rachel said getting up looking between Brooke, Lucas, and Haley. "I'm gonna go see Owen, meet you at Tric tonight." Haley had her last show of the tour tonight and she couldn't be more excited to perform at home.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Brooke told her. They all laughed.

Lucas moved over and hugged his best friend, "It's good to have you back Hales."

Jude started to cry in the other room. "I'll get him." Lucas said.

Moments later, Haley and Brooke heard Lucas utter an "Oh shit."

"Jude takes his biggest poop during his nap usually. I should go help him." Brooke said getting up as Haley laughed. "We really did miss you Hales." She said leaning against the door frame.

"You too."

* * *

><p>"Knock, knock." Nathan said walking through the partially open door to Haley's dressing room.<p>

"Hey" Haley smiled from under the vanity as she got up.

"Why do I have deja vu?" Nathan asked laughing, remembering finding her in the same position many years ago. "Some things never change."

"What do you expect from me? I'm still the weird old Haley James you met ten years ago." She laughed.

"You're not weird. You're just… Haley." They both smiled. "And wow… ten years." They both thought, realizing that they would have been celebrating their ten year anniversary if they were still together. "But any way, I just came in to wish you good luck and say that...I'm really happy you're home Hales."

Hales. She thought, he was calling her Hales again, and she liked it. "Thanks" She smiled.

"Aright, I should go snag myself a seat before everyone takes them." He said moving his arm in a pointing motion.

Haley nodded as he moved towards the door. "Nathan." She called out. "I'm… I'm really happy I'm home too."

Nathan smiled understanding exactly what she meant.

* * *

><p>"Hey guys" Haley said walking out on stage looking at the packed crowd, but her eyes focused on her closest friends seated at the bar. "Thank you for coming out to my final show, I'm so excited to be back home. You might have heard that Chris, Kate, and I are coming out with a compilation album. Well on that we each have two solo songs and how would you all like if I sang you guys one of mine? It's brand new."<p>

The crowd screamed as Haley laughed. "That's what I thought, it's called Red and I hope you like it." Haley nodded back at the band and they started to play.

_Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street_

_Faster than the wind, passionate as sin, ending so suddenly_

_Loving him is like trying to change your mind once you're already flying through the free fall_

_Like the colors in autumn, so bright just before they lose it all_

_Losing him was blue like I'd never known_

_Missing him was dark grey all alone_

_Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met_

_But loving him was red_

_Loving him was red_

_Touching him was like realizing all you ever wanted was right there in front of you_

_Memorizing him was as easy as knowing all the words to your old favorite song_

_Fighting with him was like trying to solve a crossword and realizing there's no right answer_

_Regretting him was like wishing you never found out that love could be that strong_

_Losing him was blue like I'd never known_

_Missing him was dark grey all alone_

_Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met_

_But loving him was red_

_Oh, red_

_Burning red_

_Remembering him comes in flashbacks and echoes_

_Tell myself it's time now, gotta let go_

_But moving on from him is impossible_

_When I still see it all in my head_

_In burning red_

_Burning, it was red_

_Oh, losing him was blue like I'd never known_

_Missing him was dark grey all alone_

_Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met_

_'Cause loving him was red_

_Yeah, yeah, red_

_We're burning red_

_And that's why he's spinnin' 'round in my head_

_Comes back to me, burning red_

_Yeah, yeah_

_His love was like driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street_

* * *

><p>Red-Taylor Swift<p> 


	15. Let Me Fall

"Now for my last song of the night I have a little backstory. Almost ten years ago to the day I performed my first song in public, in this very club, and ever since then I haven't stopped, because of one special person in my life who encouraged me. So I encourage all of you to follow your dreams, and don't stop until you reach them. So now I'm going to perform that song I sang that day, it's called Let Me Fall."

_It's October again_

_Leaves are comin' down_

_One more year's come and gone_

_And nothing's changed at all_

_Wasn't I supposed to be someone_

_Who can face the things that I've been runnin' from_

_Let me feel_

_I don't care if I break down_

_Let me fall_

_Even if I hit the ground_

_And if I_

_Cry a little_

_Die a little_

_At least I know I lived_

_Just a little_

_I become much too good_

_At being invincible_

_I'm an expert_

_At play at safe and keep it cool_

_But I swear_

_This isn't who I meant to be_

_I refuse to let my life_

_Roll all over me_

_Let me feel_

_I don't care if I break down_

_Let me fall_

_Even if I hit the ground_

_And if I_

_Cry a little_

_Die a little_

_At least I know I lived_

_Just a little_

_I wanna be somebody_

_I, I wanna be somebody_

_I wanna be somebody_

_I, I wanna be Somebody_

_Who can face the things that I've been Runnin' from_

_Let me feel_

_I don't care if I break down_

_Let me fall_

_Even if I hit the ground_

_And if I_

_Cry a little_

_Die a little_

_At least I know I lived…_

_It's October again_

_Leaves are comin' down_

_One more year's come and gone_

_And nothing's changed at all..._

Haley stepped off the stage and let out a sigh of relief, she had just performed her last show of the tour in Tree Hill no less. She smiled she would miss the tour and being to perform every night, which was her favorite part of singing, but she loved being home. Before it could truly sink in she was attacked in a hug. "Brooke! Rachel!"

"You were so great!" Rachel said.

"Amazing Hales." Brooke shrieked

"Thanks, so I have to go give my interview now with E! but after we'll start the party." She said before heading towards her dressing room, where she was meeting Giuliana Rancic. After the band was putting together a huge party just for them and their friends to celebrate the end of the tour. By then the crowd would have cleared out and the DJ they hired would have arrived. Haley took a seat in front of the interviewer.

"Hello Haley!" The Guiliana said cheerfully.

"Hi Guiliana."

"How are you? With finishing off the tour and everything?"

"Just great. I'm so overwhelmed with everything that's happened and I'm just grateful to have had my family and friends support me through this."

"And your album comes out soon, what's next?"

"Well my album drops next week, then Chris, Mia, and I will start working on the compilation album and then we all plan on touring together again. We hope to have a quick turn around with the album so we were planning on having it out within three months."

"Wow, that's so exciting. Now you mentioned on stage a certain someone who encouraged you to sing, who was it?"

"Nathan actually." She said. "He was the first person I ever sang in front of."

"And how are things with the two of you?"

Haley bit her lip "We are co-parenting and raising our son in love and that's all that matters. We are making it work, Jamie is happy, and anything else is not the publics concern."

Giuliana nodded, being a mother herself she understood. "Any plans for after the tour?"

"Just getting back in the studio, and also getting back to my home routine with Jamie."

"Well thank you for talking to us, and good luck with the album."

"Thank you" Haley smiled.

* * *

><p>"Lucas come dance with me." Brooke pleaded pulling on his arm as he Jake, Haley, Peyton, Chris, Mia, and Nathan sat around a table.<p>

"Brooke" He groaned.

"I will" Peyton smiled standing up. She had been off her crutches for a few days now and was ready to have fun with her friends.

Brooke smiled and took her hand to the dance floor. The pair began to dance just like old times.

"I missed this" Brooke said a few minutes later.

"I did too. I am really sorry about everything." Peyton continued "And if we could be like this more often, I could really use a friend."

Brooke stopped dancing and looked at her. "It's alright. It's in the past." She said before they hugged.

Back at the table

They're all sitting at the table together. Chris and Mia had just found their way to the bar and Lucas had taken the opportunity to speak to Jake, leaving Nathan and Haley in their own little world.

"So, guess it's just us?"

Jake nodded, "Yep."

"So..." Lucas paused. "What do you do for a living?"

"I'm a physical therapist." He said. "You?"

"I'm a writer."

"That's fun."

They sat there awkwardly trying to make small talk.

"How long have you known Peyton?" Lucas asked.

"A few weeks." He replied. "She's a good girl, you know." Jake continued.

"Who, Peyton?" Jake nodded. "I know."

"She was devastated after the accident. She realized how much she messed up and she hating talking to all kinds of doctors. I don't think she meant to tell me what she was thinking, but she did." Lucas payed attention to what Jake was saying. "She felt terribly sorry for what happen years ago and she felt like an idiot for going in between you and Brooke. She tries hard, you know. She wants to be good. She wants to make others happy now. My daughter, Jenny, she had a tear in her dress and Peyton came to fix it. She made my daughter's day when she came to her recital. Peyton, she's amazing and I admire that."

Lucas smiled at Jake and put a hand on his shoulder, "You're a good guy Jake Jagielski. Just be careful with her heart."

"I will." Jake assured.

At the other end of the table Nathan and Haley were talking when the DJ changed the song.

"I love this song!" Haley said looking toward the dance floor.

"Really?" Nathan said, not sure it was her style.

"Rihanna is amazing. Please don't stop the music." Haley sang along as Nathan laughed

"Come dance with me."

"No way" He insisted, not wanting to embarrass himself

Haley smirked and slowly walked backwards. "C'mon."

"Fine" He sighed getting up. As the pair danced, little did they know all eyes were on them, but they couldn't take their eyes off one another. Haley laughed as Nathan tried to dance, and grabbed his hands to help him. Nathan was now trying to dance terribly, just to make Haley laugh. Eventually Nathan turned Haley around, so her back was two his front, and held her by her hips close to him as they swayed back and forth.

* * *

><p>Haley groaned as Jamie jumped on her bed early the next morning, "It's my day to go see dad!" He said excitedly.<p>

"It is" Haley smiled, seeing how excited he was. "It is still a little early to go over but how about we both get showers and I'll help you pack your bag, then we can pick up donuts and bring them over to dad's."

"That sounds great." Jamie said quickly getting off of his mother and running out of her room as she laughed.

* * *

><p>"Dad! Dad wake up" Jamie shouted walking through his father's house, after not answering the door Haley pulled out the spare key he had given her. The pair walked into his room, Haley leaned against the door frame as Jamie woke him up the same way he did for her. If only they were in the same bed, Haley thought. What... why am I thinking these things? Head out of the gutter Haley.<p>

"Morning champ." Nathan groaned sitting up.

"We bought donuts and mom says we have your favorite."

"Thats awesome. Now hop off of me so we can go eat them." Jame did and Nathan stood up only in a pair of sweatpants. Haley's eyes grew wide as she bit her lip.

"I'll go get out plates." Jamie said running out of the room, and when they were alone Nathan raised an eyebrow and smirked as he said "What, does this make you uncomfortable?" before walking into the bathroom.

* * *

><p>The unconventional family had had a nice breakfast, talking about Jamie's next year of school and what to expect, how he was going to join the basketball and baseball team this year, Nathan volunteered to coach both surprising Haley, Haley's new album and what was to come of her career, and how Nathan's bootcamp sessions were starting. It was nice and all three of them enjoyed it.<p>

"I should get going." Haley said putting her plate in the dishwasher, "I have to get to the label, cover shoot day for the album." She smiled.

"I'm sure you'll look beautiful." Nathan said nodding his head.

"Thanks. Now what are you guys going to go to the rivercourt or play the playstation again." She joked, seeing as that was what they always did. "Or maybe even take him out of town." She said raising an eyebrow and elbowing him as he chuckled.

"Whatever Jimmy Jam wants to do" Nathan replied running his hand through his sons hair.

"Can we play the playstation?" Jamie asked.

"Sure go get it fire up."

"Bye mom" Jamie said with a quick glance as he ran out the room.

"Bye, love you too honey" She laughed. "So you coaching baseball?"

"If he likes it, I'll be happy, even if it's not basketball it doesn't matter." Nathan nodded.

"You're great with him Nate, I know you were afraid but, you have nothing to worry about."

"Thanks Haley, it means a lot."

Haley bit her lip, what was she doing to herself, she loved this man but things were too complicated… but were they? "I should get going, Rachel is going to pick him up tomorrow because her and Owen are taking him to the arcade, so I'll see you later."

"Bye Hales" Hales… her heart started beating faster as he called her that. "Thanks for the donuts." She nodded with a smile as she walked down the main hall.

* * *

><p>Brooke zipped up the back of Haley's dress as they both looked at Haley's reflection in the mirror. "Brooke."<p>

"This is it" Brooke said looking at Haley, "Now lets get your makeup touched up." Brooke had came along with Haley to help her get ready for the shoot.

As Haley stepped on set and the cameraman started calling out directions for her she heard Brooke shouting at her, she couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

><p>After walking out of the studio when her shoot was over she went straight to her car. During the shoot all they had done was play her new album on repeat. She stood around smiling and acting happy as she listened to the sound of her miserable life. She listened to her songs about heartbreak and missing Nathan over and over again, and now she couldn't keep it in any longer. She was barely seated before she started sobbing. Haley held onto the steering wheel and tried to hold back the tears with little success.<p>

She sat there for a while before realizing that she was making herself miserable. She couldn't do this anymore. She didn't know what to do and felt completely lost, like whatever decision she would make would be wrong. Brooke walked out of the studio and saw Haley. She opened Haley's driver side door. "Scoot over, I'll drive us home." Brooke nearly whispered, not wanting to have this conversation in public.

After getting situated on the couch, Brooke sat next to Haley wrapping an arm around her. They waited for Lucas to come down stairs after putting Jude to sleep, and he sat next to Haley on the couch.

"Alright sweetie, what's wrong?" Brooke asked.

"I just… I'm miserable. I'm miserable. When I'm with him I want to be with him, but then I'm afraid. I'm afraid that he will hurt me and Jamie again. But then when I'm away from him I want to be with him, and I want Jamie to have a real family. I feel like either way I lose, and no matter what I do will be wrong. I feel like we hurt Jamie so bad and if we stay like things are it's bad for him but if we get together and Nathan leaves it will hurt him more. I feel like I am screwed every day and am just miserable."

"Oh, honey. Whether you let Nathan in or not, he's already a big part of Jamie's life. Don't let that hold you back because even if he does leave…"

Lucas cut in. "Which he won't."

"Then the damage is already there. Jamie is already really close to his dad. So stop making yourself miserable. This might sound bad, but take Jamie out of the equation. What do you want, what will make you happy?" Brooke asked.

"I'm just so confused," She cried out. "Aside from the three days we were together, I missed him, I legitimately missed him while I was on tour. I miss him every day and just feel like part of me is missing, but I can't handle the thought of him leaving me again. I would rather live a life where we fight and talk sometimes, rather than a life without him."

Lucas moved to hug his best friend. "Hales, you need to stop worrying and just take that chance, because if not you're always going to wonder what might have been."

"I want Nathan and I love Nathan. With my whole heart, you guys know this. I just…"

"What's really holding you back Hales?" Lucas asked.

"I don't know." She sighed. "I'm scared. I feel like I'm not ready, but...maybe one day, one day soon I will be." She said feeling a slight weight lifted off her chest at the thought of it. "Can we just relax tonight?"

"Sleep over!" Brooke shouted.

"Brooke, we all live in the same house and sleep in the same house every night." Lucas said with a confused squint.

"But like, we can sleep on the couch and watch movies and eat ice cream. We don't do that every night." She explained.

"Okay." Haley laughed rolling her eyes.

* * *

><p>The next morning Lucas had gone off for a meeting with his editor, Jude was with Karen, and Brooke was headed to turn in some new designs, leaving Haley all alone since Rachel was picking Jamie up from Nathan's to hang out with him this morning. Haley was still so excited to be home and decided to clean and put away all of the things she had brought on tour with her. In doing so she found an old box buried in the back of her closet filled with old home videos, she couldn't help but watching them in the living room as she folded laundry. She stumbled across a tape of Christmas when she was seven. Taylor and Quinn were picking on her on the video and she could hear Lydia try and warn them not to pick on their little sister. Her older brother, Andrew then came over to stop them. "Don't worry Haley. I'll have your back." He told her. The tape ended with Haley receiving a few presents and after it was a few more Christmas' in a row.<p>

When that tape ended she searched through the box to find another. Grabbing it she placed it in the VCR to play. Sitting down she instantly regretted the tape she picked but didn't change it. She sat and watched as she filmed Nathan holding an infant Jamie. They were talking into the camera as if they were talking to Jamie in twenty years saying what he liked and how much he weighed. The two were joking around and Nathan's smile was bigger than ever. Then the tape cut out to seven months later when they were playing with him, as he could now sit up. Finally, the last clip was them on his first birthday. She smiled as someone, she remembered it being Lucas, holding the camera and focusing it on the family of three. Nathan and Haley each stood on a side of his height chair as everyone at the party sang Happy Birthday to him. Nathan and Haley shared a look as Haley was on the verge of tears. Nathan squeezed her hand before running his other hand on the top of Jamie's head, before Haley smiled wide. She could remember how happy she was and she wanted to be that happy again. She just didn't know how, but she felt closer than ever to finding out.

* * *

><p>"Haley Bob, we're back." Rachel said walking in and putting her purse on the chair next to the door. Haley came walking down the stairs and hugged Jamie. "Hey baby, did you have fun?"<p>

"Yeah"

"Alright, you can tell me about it later, why don't you and Owen go play in the back yard." Haley asked looking up at Owen as he nodded and led Jamie out of the house.

"What's up?" Rachel asked.

"I just...I'm sick of things being the way they are, and me and Nathan being the way we are. I'm sick of thinking of what might happen, and just waiting."

Rachel instantly knew what her friend was talking about "Then stop, just go for it."

"I can't, what about Jamie?" She questioned, she knew she shouldn't but she was still a little hung up and worried about going back to Nathan.

"What about Jamie? He would love if you two were together, and if you did break up it would be the same as it is now." Haley shrugged. "C'mere" Rachel said sitting them down on the stairs. "You know that old phrase. "If you love someone, set them free. If they come back they're yours forever" He came back to you Haley. He came back." Haley shook her head as she bit her lip. "He's yours, always and forever." A tear rolled down Haley's face at the thought. "Just go be happy."

"Would you..." Haley stood up and reached for her purse "Would you mind watching Jamie for a little while?"

"Of course." Rachel smiled. "Go get your man."

* * *

><p><em>Let Me Fall-India Menzel<em>


	16. We Both Know

_They all say it_

_All the ones who made it_

_Once you find the one you claim it_

_But you're gonna have to fight_

Haley walked up to Nathan's doorstep and bit her lip. She knocked slowly before taking a half of step backwards. She waited outside his door nervously, waiting for him to come answer. When he opened the door he asked "Hey Hales, what are you…" Haley cut him off before he could complete his sentence.

She leaned in and kissed him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned into him, one hand running over his cheek. Nathan was confused at first but when Haley didn't let go, he wrapped his arms around her as well and they kissed for a while. Even when the kiss was over, Nathan leaned his head against Haley's and they stayed there, looking into one anothers eyes for another few minutes, until Nathan pulled away.

"Hales, what, what does this mean…" He hesitated, "For us?"

_When I think back_

_The things that threw us off track_

_We handled like a heart attack_

_Cause we didn't see the light_

Haley took a deep breath before smiling. "I'm ready Nathan, I'm ready for us to be together again, as a family. I'm still afraid, but I want to give us a chance. I want to work for this, for us. I love you Nathan." She said looking into his eyes as his smile grew wider. Nathan's arms were still wrapped loosely around Haley's waist, and he squeezed her tighter. "I will always love you and can't be without you anymore. I feel like a part of me is missing without you. But… it took me so long to realize this and I get it if you don't want us to be together anymore. I will understand and try to move on…"

This time Nathan cut off Haley with a kiss, another that lasted for a while as they held each other, savoring in the feeling. "Sorry to cut you off. I know your babbling tendencies can last a while." He said as she chuckled. "I also know that you are the smarter one between the two of us, but you thinking that I don't want you… that has to be the stupidest thing I have ever heard."

Haley chuckled once more as she grasped his t-shirt and took in the smell of his cologne, leaning on his chest. "I love you too Haley, and I will not give up. I will not leave. And I will make this work. Always and forever."

"Always and forever." Haley whispered back to him, pecking him on the lips. "Thank you, thank you for waiting for me."

_Ooh oooh, and now_

"No Hales, thank you." He said squeezing her waist once more. "Thank you for believing in me."

Haley smiled once more. "I'm so happy."

"Me too baby, let's go inside and we can talk." Nathan said leading her in the door.

"I like hearing you call me baby again." She said quietly, yet giddy inside at the thought.

* * *

><p>Haley smiled into Nathan's chest as she laid next to him on the couch. They had been like that for hours. After talking everything out they still stayed like that, not talking just enjoying being together once more. "We should tell Jamie." Nathan said.<p>

Haley shot up "He is going to be so excited." She quickly got off the couch before grabbing her purse and shoes. "Let's go."

"Excited are we?" Nathan laughed seeing her shoot up.

"Hell yes. C'mon you slow turtle."

"Nothing is more sexy than you comparing me to a turtle." Nathan joked as they walked out of the house.

"Oh you'll see sexy tonight." She said with a wink moving to her car. "Wait, where are we going to live?"

"We should get a new house, together. To symbolize us starting fresh." Haley nodded in agreement.

When they got to the house Haley practically leapt out of the car. Walking inside Rachel saw the look on Haley's face. A look she hadn't seen in a while, of pure happiness, and she instantly knew.

"Hey Jaime." Haley smiled.

"What's dad doing here?" He asked putting down his video game controller.

"Actually your mom and I wanted to talk to you." Nathan said taking a seat on the coffee table across from Jamie, Haley sat next to him.

"Are you… are you going back to New York?" He asked Nathan before looking back to Haley "Is dad leaving?"

"No, no, no, no." Nathan rushed out quickly. "I'm never leaving you again, don't worry."

"Actually, it's the opposite. Your dad and I… we're back together." Haley went to explain but couldn't before Jamie jumped into their arms.

_We both_

_Know our_

_Own limitations_

_And that's why we're strong_

_Now that we've_

_Spent some time apart_

_We're leading each other_

_Out of the dark_

_Cause we both know_

Jamie was getting bored, sitting around the house doing nothing. He walked downstairs to where his parents were talking together in the kitchen. "Dad, Mom?" He asked.

Haley turned around and smiled at Jamie, "What's up?"

"I'm bored. Can we go to the river court?" He pouted.

Nathan and Haley shared a glance and she shrugged, "Sure."

Nathan thought for a moment and suggested, "Why don't we invite your Uncle Lucas and Aunt Brooke to come along with Jude?"

Haley smiled, "Maybe we could invite Peyton?"

Jamie shook his head viciously, "It's a great idea! Let me go get my ball." He ran down the hall back to his room and Nathan smiled. "You're amazing. You know that?" He told Haley.

She bit her lip and pretended to think, "I think I've been told once or twice." Nathan grabbed her around the waist and brought her closer and placed a soft kiss on her lips.

_From this moment_

_Forget what we were scared of_

_Say we're never giving up_

_Say you'll always try to be my_

_Helping hand_

_Try to be the one who understands_

_When things don't go as you plan_

_But we're still worth it all_

"I love you Haley." He whispered.

Jamie came back in the kitchen minutes later, ready to go. "Let me call Brooke." Haley walked away and phoned her best friend.

_Ooh oooh, and now_

Everyone met up at the river court an hour later. Jude was running around the court chasing birds and Lucas was running with him. Jamie grabbed his ball once his dad had parked the car and jumped out of the vehicle to go meet his uncle and cousin.

"Hi Jude." He waved to the little boy who giggled and ran towards his older cousin.

Nathan and Haley walked towards the court, hand in hand and Brooke couldn't help but squeal and come and hug her best friend. "Excuse me, I need Haley." She pulled her arm and dragged her towards the picnic table. Haley had been staying at Nathan's house until they found a new house, so she and Brooke had been apart more than they ever had.

"It's amazing, everything has just fallen into place." She smiled.

Half an hour later, Peyton arrived at the river court along with Jake. Jamie was confused when he saw a little girl, around his age, following them. He leaned towards his dad and asked, "Who is that?"

"I'm not sure." He told him. He hadn't spoken much to Peyton in the last weeks. "I think it's Jake's daughter."

Jamie nodded, "Awesome."

Jenny took Peyton's hand shyly and stood next to her. They joined the gang around the picnic table and Peyton said "Everyone, this is Jenny."

Jamie walked up to her and smiled, "I'm Jamie. Want to go play some basketball?"

She looked back at her dad for confirmation and he nodded, "It's okay Jen, you can go." She smiled and ran with Jamie towards the court. Jude chuckled and tried to run with them.

The adults were all sitting on the picnic table sharing old stories and laughing until Lucas suggested, "How about a game of basketball? The girls against the boys?"

_We both_

_Know our_

_Own limitations_

_And that's why we're strong_

_Now that we've_

_Spent some time apart_

_We're leading each other_

_Out of the dark_

_Cause we both know_

Nathan smiled, "Just like old times."

Haley nodded, "Let's do it."

They called the kids over and Jamie and Jude (even if he would just run around and laugh) were put in the boys team and Jenny went with the girls.

"Don't worry Jenny. We'll beat them." Brooke promised the little girl and it made her laugh.

The ball was thrown in the air and the game started. Jake got the ball and Peyton whispered something in his ear and he surrendered the ball to her. "Sorry guys." He told his teammates, who just laughed.

Peyton smiled and threw the ball to Brooke who passed it to Haley. She attempted to dribble with the ball and saw Jenny trying to go close enough to the basket to get the ball. Haley was about to throw it when she felt a pair of hands wrap themselves around her waist. She let out a small scream.

"Nathan, let me go!" She laughed as he lifted her up.

"Not a chance." He said.

Haley chuckled and tried to throw the ball at Jenny. She surprised herself when she caught it and she was nervous as to what she should do with her ball. "Throw it!" Jamie encouraged her.

She smiled and tried to throw it in the net. It rolled around the edge of it and fell in. The girls all yelled, happy to have scored a basket.

_What we're scared of_

_What we're scared of_

_And what dreams are made of_

_What dreams are made of_

_They can take us_

_Further than what anybody can see_

It was just like old times. They were all happy together again, all their problems resolved.

Nathan led a blindfolded Haley up a set of stairs. "Nathan where are we going? Are you annoyed with me already that you're killing me so soon?"

Nathan laughed. "No just keep walking, three more steps."

"It feels like you're trying to kill me because of that fact that I can barely walk without falling, and here I am on a set of stairs blindfolded."

"Hales, I've got you and am not going to let anything happen to you." Him saying that calmed her, realizing once again that things were well again. "Alright, you can take off the blindfold."

"Nathan." Haley said breathlessly looking around. "What is this?"

"Our new house together."

"Really?" She smiled, it was her dream home, she knew it instantly. She had told Nathan many times about this house when they were younger. It was up for sale when they first got married and for fun the came to one of the open houses and Haley fell in love then.

"It is all ours. Let me show you the bedrooms."

"I see, it's all about the bedroom and the sex with me, huh?" Haley joked as they walked up the stairs.

"Of course, see here is our room where we will make many more beautiful children. This is Jamie's room, this is your music room, and the room across from ours will be the nursery." He said walking her down the hall.

_We both_

_Know our_

_Own limitations_

_And that's why we're strong_

_Now that we've_

_Spent some time apart_

_We're leading each other_

_Out of the dark_

"What about this one?" She said walking towards the last door frame.

"This is my room." Brooke said running out. Lucas behind her.

"Brooke" Haley said moving to hug her.

"Actually Brooke it isn't."

"Nathan." Brooke started to whine.

"It isn't because…" Nathan started to say. "Come with me." He led them down the stairs and out the door. "I know you guys have grown so much closer now because living together and I know you can't imagine being apart so I thought of something to make it easier." He faced Brooke and Lucas. "I want to thank you two for taking such good care of my girl, and my son so that house right there." He said pointing across the street to a beautiful big house with a 'sold' sign on it. "That is your new house." He could barely finish his sentence before Brooke screamed.

_We both (we both)_

_Know our (know our)_

_Own limitations_

_And that's why we're strong_

_Now that we've_

_Spent some time apart_

_We're leading each other_

_Out of the dark_

"Alright Nathan, I'm headed to my doctors appointment." She shouted three days later down the hall of their new house.

"Okay, I'll see you later." He shouted back, poking his head out from the kitchen where he was unwrapping dishes. Haley had been feeling sick lately, and if she had the flu, like Brooke and Jude had came down with the day before, she didn't want to give it to Jamie.

* * *

><p>Nathan wandered down the halls, looking for Haley. He had seen Haley's car in the driveway but didn't hear her come in. Finally he found her in one of the empty bedrooms. "Hey what are you doing in here?"<p>

"I just found some old boxes of Jamie's baby clothes." She smiled pulling out a few onesies out of the boxes in front of her.

"He was so little." Nathan said squatting next to her. Haley closed the now empty box and stood up. She moved it into another pile and as Nathan stood up as well, she turned around to face him.

"You said this room was the nursery, for our future beautiful children right?" She said slightly turning and looking around, before facing him once more.

"Yeah why?" He asked confused.

"Well I was thinking, we should probably paint it, maybe a light yellow. This dark brown really isn't nice for a kids room. And we should probably start soon… because I'm pregnant." She smiled looking up at him, waiting for a response.

_Cause we both know_

_We both know_

* * *

><p><em><strong>This is the second to last chapter, the final will be up withing the next few days. We are slightly discussing a sequel so if we did, what would you want to see? <strong>_

_**We Both Know-Colbie Calliet and Gavin Degraw**_


	17. All of Me

_Seven Months Later..._

Haley slightly groaned as she stretched the next morning, waking up. She felt Nathan's arm loosely around her waist, a feeling she was still not completely used to after so many years of him being gone. She opened her eyes to see his staring back at her. "Good morning beautiful." He smiled.

"Mmh, morning." She smiled back. "How long have you been up?"

He shrugged his shoulders and pulled her closer to him. "Not long. How are you feeling?"

"Okay I guess… big." She sighed leaning in to kiss him before sitting up and running a hand along her now very large stomach.

"I know, but soon our baby will be here and it will all be worth it." He tried to comfort her. Haley had anything but the easiest pregnancy, compared to when she was pregnant with Jamie. She had terrible morning sickness until she was almost six months along, which being on a tour bus for a month of it didn't help, and then after that she had continuous braxton hicks. Haley had finished her album, and then her, Chris, and Mia finished the compilation album within a few weeks and the three were off on tour together again just three months after Haley got back. Luckily, she didn't start to show until she was around five months, right after the tour ended. Since Nathan and her had gotten back together they tried to keep as much of their relationship private as possible, which meant for Haley that she kept her pregnancy low key and no one knew yet. "Today's the day." Nathan whispered kissing her cheek before getting up to use the bathroom. Haley smiled at the thought, today was the day that they would announce her pregnancy.

_What would I do without your smart mouth_

_Drawing me in, and you kicking me out_

_Got my head spinning, no kidding, I can't pin you down_

_What's going on in that beautiful mind_

_I'm on your magical mystery ride_

_And I'm so dizzy, don't know what hit me, but I'll be alright_

She pulled herself out of the bed and pulled out clothes for the day. Jamie walked in and flopped himself down on the bed.

"Good morning to you, sleepy head." Haley said ruffling his hair. He couldn't be more excited for the baby to be born, and most days couldn't stop talking about it.

"Morning." He muffled into the pillow.

"You know what today is right?" She asked as he shot up in excitement, just as Nathan walked back into the room.

"Dad's pregame press day! The day before the season starts." He said excitedly as Nathan fist bumped him. Nathan's first game of the season with the Bobcats started tomorrow and the family of three was all going that afternoon to the stadium for all the press and interviews about Nathan's season. Then tomorrow, Jamie and Haley would be at the game, that's why they chose to announce the pregnancy this morning. After an NBA lockout that lasted nearly four months, the season was finally ready to begin and Nathan was excited to finally be a Bobcat.

"How about we go down and get some breakfast?" She asked him.

"But your bed is really comfy." He laid his head on the pile of blankets.

"C'mon champ." Nathan said picking up Jamie and throwing him over his shoulder, carrying him down the stairs.

"Fine, but you have to make breakfast, because if not mom will try to give me a bagel with mustard on it, or she will forget and give me still frozen waffles."

"Hey that was once!" Haley defended herself as she walked down the stairs.

"Really?" Jamie asked.

"Okay twice." She sighed.

After breakfast Haley's manager called saying the photo was posted and the word was out. Haley smiled wide and quickly pulled Nathan toward a computer to load her website and there it was. In the photo, the pair was standing on the beach and Haley's shirt was rolled up above her stomach exposing her very round belly. Both Nathan and Haley's hands were on her stomach as they kissed. Under it was a note that Haley wrote saying. "Nathan and I are very excited to announce that we will be welcoming our daughter into the world over the next few weeks. Thank you all for your well wishes."

Nathan smiled over at her before leaning in to kiss her once more.

_My head's under water_

_But I'm breathing fine_

_You're crazy and I'm out of my mind_

They were sitting in the waiting room when their doctor came out and called for Haley. Nathan got up before her and helped her up from her chair. She smiled, "Thanks."

"Hi Haley, Nathan." Dr. Goldstein smiled, holding open the door to the exam room.

"Let's get you up on the table and we can start." Nathan and the doctor helped her up and she sat upwards.

"Let's see." She placed the scanner on her stomach and moved it around a little. They all sat quietly until a heartbeat echoed in the room. A tear rolled down Haley's cheek as Nathan's eyes welled up. "That's our baby." Haley smiled over at him as he squeezed her hand.

"Sounds nice and strong." The doctor commented after taking a count. "Now lets see if we can take a peek at her today." She then pulled out a different scanner. "It's going to be cold." She warned her. She placed a gel on her stomach and moved the machine on Haley's stomach, trying to get a good picture of the baby. "There she is."

That was when Nathan cried himself. "That's our daughter."

"Our little girl." Haley whispered, "God Nathan, look at her little nose, and her little fingers."

"She is going to be here so soon."

"Any day now." The doctor commented.

Nathan took a deep breath and walked out of the room. He came back in a few minutes later with Jamie by his side. "Hi mama." He approached his mother.

"Look there," She told him. "That's your baby sister."

Jamie looked at the sonogram, amazed and with teary eyes. "This is the best thing ever!" He stood near his mother and took her hand. "I'm going to be the best big brother!"

"We know bud." Nathan said laying a hand about his son's shoulders.

"I'm so excited for her to be here."

"Us too." Haley smiled at him before looking over at the screen.

_'Cause all of me_

_Loves all of you_

_Love your curves and all your edges_

_All your perfect imperfections_

_Give your all to me_

_I'll give my all to you_

_You're my end and my beginning_

_Even when I lose I'm winning_

_'Cause I give you all of me_

_And you give me all of you_

Lucas was holding a tray with juices and soft drinks and headed back to the table in the back of Karen's Cafe. He placed the tray on the center of the table and Brooke took a juice for Jude.

"Thanks broody."

Jenny smiled from her seat next to her dad and Peyton and exclaimed, "Yay, free drinks!"

Peyton laughed, "What do you say to Lucas, Jenny?"

She looked up shyly and thanked him before taking a sip of her drink.

"No Jude, don't do that." Rachel warned the little boy, who was trying to throw the bottle at her. Rachel sighed and looked at Brooke, "Seriously, what's up with kids and throwing things?"

"He thinks it's funny to watch us pick the things he throws." She explained. "He knows we'll pick it up."

Lucas sat down next to Brooke and held her hand. "Has anyone heard from Nathan and Haley?"

Rachel shrugged, "I think she had an appointment."

Jake spoke up, "Are they meeting us here?"

"I don't know." Rachel replied.

"Aw, they have to come. We're only missing them and we could call this a little reunion!" Brooke said.

"Brooke we see each other like every week anyway." Peyton laughed as Owen walked in.

"Hey babe." He said leaning in to kiss her, he had gotten off work late but still came to meet them all.

"Hi fiance." Rachel smiled.

"Give it a rest." Brooke groaned, "You guys have been engaged for a month, we know."

"Coming from the girl who every time she has talked to me in the past month reminds me that she can't do certain things because she's four months pregnant." Rachel fired back as everyone laughed.

"Hello!" Haley said walking in, Jamie and Nathan following her.

"Well aren't you a little late, Ms. punctual." Lucas said giving her a side hug.

"Hey, it takes a while to get around."

"Alright let's eat, I'm hungry." Nathan said moving towards the kitchen.

"Of course you are." Jake joked.

Lucas followed Nathan and the two started to make sandwiches for everyone. "How's the book going?" Nathan asked.

"Great, I'm sending it to the publisher next week."

"And Brooke's new line?"

"Officially hits stores next month, she's excited. How's Haley's album?"

"Good, she's almost done writing and is going to wait to record till after the baby is born. And I have my first game tomorrow."

Lucas reached out to pound his brothers fist "I wouldn't miss it. How was the doctors appointment?"

"Great, any day now they said." Nathan said with a huge smile. "I won't screw this up this time." Nathan promised.

"I know little brother." Lucas smiled patting him on the back.

_How many times do I have to tell you_

_Even when you're crying you're beautiful too_

_The world is beating you down, I'm around through every mood_

_You're my downfall, you're my muse_

_My worst distraction, my rhythm and blues_

_I can't stop singing, it's ringing, in my head for you_

After heading through a full press line and then having a two hour practice, the family of three was headed out to dinner. Jamie had the best day and appreciated when some of the interviewers would ask him questions as well. The coach even let Jamie and other players kids come out for the last ten minutes of practice to play.

"I'm going to take a seat of their while you two play." Haley smiled leaning over to kiss Nathan as they walked into the game center/pizza place.

"Okay." Nathan smiled before running off with Jamie as he had the time of his life.

_My head's under water_

_But I'm breathing fine_

_You're crazy and I'm out of my mind_

Haley let out a sigh of happiness as Nathan crawled into bed next to her that night, pulled the covers over them, and he laid his arm over her waist. She rolled over to face him as he leaned in to peck her on the lips. "Today was a great day." He whispered to her.

"Tomorrow will be even better." She smiled at the thought of his first game.

"I have everything I ever wanted. Know that Haley, you have made me so happy and given me a perfect life."

"I know Nathan, why are you saying this?"

"Because, I have a perfect life because you forgave me. You took me back when I didn't deserve it at all, but you trusted in me. You believed in the man I could be, and now am."

Haley leaned in and kissed him. "I love you. I love our family. I love the man you are. I love how far you've grown since I met you. Jamie looks up to you." She smiled. "You've come so far and I appreciate that. Jamie loves having you around and he finally has the male figure in his life he's always needed. You're not Dan. I know you're always worried about that, but you are so much better than Dan."

"God I love you." Nathan said leaning in to kiss her. "I'm grateful for the way you've raised our son. He's perfect. I know it's been hard for you but I thank you. And I promise, this little one," He placed his hand on her very large stomach. "Is going to be just as loved."

"I know." She smiled, placing her hand over his. "I have everything I ever dreamed of. All our dreams came true."

"I only had two dreams that mattered, to have you in my life, and to have a family. Thank you for being my family Haley." He kissed her.

"Thank you for making me so happy." She smiled against his lips, before letting out an uncontrollable yawn.

"Alright, lets go to sleep, we have a big day ahead of us."

"Yes we do." Haley said nuzzling into his chest.

_'Cause all of me_

_Loves all of you_

_Love your curves and all your edges_

_All your perfect imperfections_

_Give your all to me_

_I'll give my all to you_

_You're my end and my beginning_

_Even when I lose I'm winning_

_'Cause I give you all of me_

_And you give me all of you, oh_

"Hey." She smiled entering the kitchen.

"Morning Peyton." Jenny smiled from her seat on a stool. Her father was on the other side of the counter making breakfast. "You ruined the surprise. Daddy and I were going to bring you breakfast in bed. Right daddy?"

"That's right sweetie." He smiled and gave his girlfriend a good morning kiss. Peyton took a seat next to Jenny and took a bite of the bacon on the table.

"What are the plans for today?" Jenny asked.

"Well," Jake started. "I thought maybe you'd like to go to the park?"

"Can we go to the library after?" Jenny asked.

Peyton smiled and turned to face the little girl, "I think that shouldn't be a problem."

"Awesome!" She exclaimed as her father put her plate of food in front of her. "Thanks daddy."

Jake gave Peyton a smile and came to sit next to her. He placed her food in front of her and placed his own plate at his seat. They ate breakfast all together before watching Jenny run off to her room to get ready to go to the park.

"I love you." Jake smiled, putting his hands around Peyton.

"I love you too." She turned around and placed a kiss on his lips.

"Ewww!" They heard behind them. Jenny stood by them with her hands crossed making a disgusted face.

"Come here you." Peyton laughed and reached for her. She placed Jenny between herself and Jake and they squished her and did a small group hug.

Lucas got home after having a meeting with his editors and walked in yelling, "I'm home."

He waited for a reply that never came. He removed his shoes and headed to the kitchen. He looked around trying to find Brooke and Jude.

He heard giggling from upstairs and made his way up the stairs. He started by checking Jude's room but found it empty. It was messy and his toys were laying around indicated he had played in it during the day.

He made his way to his and Brooke's room. He found the bed made and the clothes neatly folded and placed on the dresser. He changed from his suit into more comfortable clothes and headed towards the end of the hall. That's where they were making the nursery. They hadn't started much, Brooke had already decided on clothes for their baby but they hadn't touched the nursery much.

"There you guys are." He smiled finding Brooke sitting on the floor of the empty room with their son.

Jude looked up and smiled as he ran towards his dad. "Daddy!"

"Hello there little man." He smiled and picked up his son. "What were you doing?"

"Baby!" He clapped his hands and Lucas went to help his wife up from the floor.

"Hey." She kissed him. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." He kissed Jude's head.

"How was the meeting?" Brooke asked.

"It was fine, we were agreeing on a few terms." Brooke nodded.

"How are you?" He pressed a hand on her stomach. "How's our little baby?"

Jude clapped his hand again and giggled, "Baby."

"Well, baby and I are doing just fine." She rubbed her small belly. "Jude here was hearing all about how he would be a big brother."

Lucas smiled and hugged his wife. Jude wiggled out of his father's arms and went down on the floor. He ran off to his own room and Brooke laughed watching him try to run on his little chubby legs.

"I love you Lucas." She hugged him. "Thank you for this wonderful life."

"No, thank you Brooke Davis."

_Give me all of you_

_Cards on the table, we're both showing hearts_

_Risking it all, though it's hard_

Haley sat in the stands, with Jamie on her lap as they announced Nathan's name and he ran out onto the court. They cheered the loudest as Nathan looked up at them with a smile. This was all he ever dreamed of. Being to look up and see the two people he cared about most rooting him on. He had all he ever wanted, and couldn't be happier. He wasn't going to mess this up like he did last time. He assured Haley all the time, which drove her crazy because she had regained full trust in him. Sure it had taken time, and a lot of work but they did it. After several months, many long talks, and a few fights along the way, they worked it out.

"Look mom the game is starting and dads in the lineup. The coach is putting him in!" Jamie said excitedly. They were each sporting a "Scott" jersey proudly that day. They had gotten the first two which Nathan was extremely excited to see his name across their backs. The jerseys officially went on sale that night so for now Haley and Jamie had the only ones, which made it even more special to Nathan.

"I see bud." She smiled as she watched Nathan. She kept her eyes on him the entire game as he played his best yet. He beat his highest scoring record that night and was nearly on fire, all because of the two people cheering him on in the stands.

"Dad!" Jamie shouted running into the locker room after the game, interrupting an interview his father was giving as he jumped into his arms.

"Hey bud, what are you doing here?" Nathan asked surprised, then he saw Haley following in after.

"Jamie!" She said finally reaching him. "You're not allowed to be in here yet."

"I just wanted to see dad."

"I'm sorry." Haley said looking at Nathan, then the interviewer, then Nathan again. "I know we were supposed to wait but he really wanted to see you and I couldn't keep up with him to stop him. He was so excited."

"It's fine." The interviewer said with a smile.

"Hi baby." Nathan smiled quickly pecking Haley on the lips.

"Hi, you were amazing Nathan." She smiled excitedly.

"Yeah dad you were so good, like the best ever!" Jamie said, not able to get over the fact.

"Thank you." Nathan smiled, beaming from ear to ear. "Let me just finish this interview, then we can get going."

"Okay" Haley nodded as Nathan put Jamie down. She slightly bent over, moving a hand to her stomach as she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen.

"Are you okay?" Nathan asked quickly, moving a hand to her back.

"Yeah, probably just braxton hicks." Haley said standing normal once more. "C'mon Jaime." She said leading him to the other side of the locker room.

Nathan answered the final few questions before the interviewer began to pack up. Nathan reached to pick up his water bottle before shouting over to Haley and Jamie. "I'm done, we can get ready to go."

Haley went to say okay, but as she started to move she felt a wet tingling down her leg and she froze in place and her eyes went wide.

"What?" Nathan asked.

"I...I think." She stuttered. "Nathan, my water just broke."

Nathan's eyes mirrored Haley's as they connected and he dropped what was in his hands.

"Are you sure you're okay, you don't need anything, some water, some ice chips, maybe a …." Nathan led on pacing around her hospital room in Charlotte.

"Nathan, stop. I'm fine." She said. They had raced to the hospital and were now only waiting. Brooke and Lucas met them there and took Jamie to watch him for now. "Come sit with me." She said reaching out her hand from where she lay in her hospital bed.

He took a seat next to her, resting his elbows on her bed, he took her hand in his and lightly kissed it. "We're about to have a daughter."

"We are" She smiled. "And she is going to be so beautiful."

"Because she will look so much like her mother, and she will also have her mother's brain."

"Hopefully, she will get her father's athletic ability." Haley laughed, before her doctor walked in.

"Okay, Haley I think it's time to start pushing, are you ready to meet your baby?"

Nathan and Haley shared an excited, but nervous smile as they both nodded.

_'Cause all of me_

_Loves all of you_

_Love your curves and all your edges_

_All your perfect imperfections_

_Give your all to me_

_I'll give my all to you_

_You're my end and my beginning_

_Even when I lose I'm winning_

_'Cause I give you all of me_

_And you give me all of you_

Nathan walked in the room and smiled seeing Haley catching up on some sleep. The baby lay peacefully in her small crib next to the bed. Nathan walked to where the crib was and lifted the baby up, being careful not to hurt her.

"Hello." He smiled. "I'm your daddy." He rocked her lightly and went to sit with his newborn daughter in his arms.

"Your mommy is still asleep and your older brother can't wait to meet you." He told her. "You're going to be loved by so many."

"Nathan." Haley said groggily, opening her eyes.

"Shhh. Go back to sleep Hales, she's okay." Nathan said looking over.

"No, I'm okay, bring her over here." SHe said sitting up. Nathan took a seat next to Haley on the bed, and handed her the baby, before laying next to her. "Hi, baby girl." Haley smiled.

"She is so beautiful." Nathan said in awe.

"I'm in love. I just am so in love with her." Haley said running her hand along her daughters cheeks.

They laid on the hospital bed for a while. Nathan had his arm around his wife and Haley held their daughter, humming to her when Nathan cellphone vibrated. He took it out of his pocket, being careful not to bother Haley and the baby in the process.

"Hello." He said.

"Hey." Brooke said, from the other end of the line. "We're downstairs and Jamie is extremely excited."

"Okay, I will be right down to get him." Nathan said before slowly getting up and hanging up the phone. "I'm going to go get Jamie." He said to his wife as she smiled at the thought of Jamie meeting their daughter.

"Okay." She said as Nathan kiss the baby's forehead, and hers before leaving and coming back up five minutes later.

"Hi Jamie." She smiled.

"Hi momma." He said suddenly shy.

"C'mere." She said nodding her head as Jamie walked over and stood at his mothers side.

"Jamie meet your sister, Lyla Jordan Scott." Nathan said standing behind Jamie, putting his hand on Jamie's shoulder.

"She's beautiful." Jamie said in awe.

"Do you want to hold her?" Haley asked as Jamie nodded excitedly.

"Alright sit up on the bed." Nathan instructed.

Jamie came over and sat down next to his mom. He rested his back on the back of the bed and Nathan placed a cushion under his arm to make sure he would support his baby sister properly.

Nathan took a seat at the end of the bed as he watched Haley place Lyla in Jamie's arms. After making sure Lyla was secure Haley looked up and shared a smile with Nathan. This was a moment neither of them would ever forget. Everything had worked out for them, they had found each other once more and were in love now more than ever, with two beautiful children to prove it. Nathan's smile grew wider at the thought, he had everything he ever asked for and could ever want...aside from a few more kids down the road. He looked at his wife, and children before mouthing to Haley "I love you." only for her to mouth back "Always and Forever."

_I give you all of me_

_And you give me all of you, oh_

* * *

><p><strong><em>The End.<em>**

**_Thank you guys so much for reading, Jen and I were so lucky to have this opportunity and all of your support helped so much. Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed, and favorited! Sequel? Yay? Nay? Let us know your thoughts below._**


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